Let it Burn
by Vanillasiren
Summary: My take on the Hades/Persephone myth as it might play out within the Disney-fied Hercules universe.
1. Chapter 1

Let it Burn

Summary: My take on the Hades/Persephone myth … or well, what the Disneyfied version of it would be anyway.

Author's Note: Why? Because clearly there aren't enough Hades/Persephone fics on this board! Heh. Oh, and because doing two fics at the same time in two different fandoms is _clearly _a good idea. Anyway, this takes place after the events of the movie, but may make reference to some of the events in the animated series.

Disclaimer: I'm pretty sure the Greek mythology stuff is in the public domain. As for Disney's spin on said mythology – hey, if they had the time, energy, and inclination to sue fan fiction writers ... well, then they'd be too busy doing that to crank out the latest Hannah-Montana-teen-pop-star, soon to be Lindsey-Lohan-esque-trainwreck. So … actually, I kind of think I would prefer the lawsuit! Bring it on Disney!

Chapter One: The Plan

_Never again._

That what the first coherent though Hades had when he got out of the water. The second thought was, _never again_, the third thought was _never again_, and the thought after that … well, you get the idea. A few slimy souls still clung to him even as he emerged, and he couldn't even use his fire to zap them, drenched in soul residue as he was, so he was reduced to scrambling away from the shore bank in a most undignified fashion, shaking himself off like Cerebus might, gasping, shivering and bald.

He was really glad no one was here to see this.

After a moment, he recovered his usual flame, relieved to see that he still could. It was foolish – hey, he was immortal, after all – but still, for just a moment he'd had the irrational fear that his fire had been … permanently snuffed out. Just the thought of it made him shiver once more. _Never again._ Never, never would he _ever _get sucked into that ... that … soul-slime ever again, not even if his godhood depended on it, not if just one quick dip meant he would somehow usurp his arrogant big brother and rule the cosmos.

Oh yeah. That.

So close. He had been so close. So close, he could taste it, the bitterness of defeat in his mouth … or… maybe that was some of the soul slime? _Yeeeeuch!_ Hades gagged. Never ever ever _ever –_ _Okay, focus now, _he told himself. Okay, so – new plan. New scheme. He had to come up with something.

Something more subtle this time, for sure. Storming the gates hadn't exactly worked out well, and he'd had the Titans on his side at the time. Of course, it would have worked out quite brilliantly if stupid little Nutmeg hadn't gone all noble and his big dumb ox of a nephew Jerkules hadn't –

_Focus, _he reminded himself again. No good dwelling on the past. He needed a new strategy. All the gods of Olympus were too much for him to take on at once. So he needed to … what was the phrase? Oh yes, divide and conquer. That was it. Good plan. Get the other gods to fight each other, and/or get some of them on his side.

Getting someone on his side, now that was going to be a problem. None of the gods would openly defy Zeus, even if they wanted to (and he knew at least a few of them wanted to, he wasn't the only disgruntled deity in this pantheon). He could bargain with them for their loyalty, but even as he considered it, he was forced to admit to himself that he really didn't have anything to offer another immortal at the moment, and certainly not something that would make them risk incurring Zeus' wrath. Therefore, his immediate goal should be acquiring some bargaining chips for dealing with the other gods.

And to that end …

"PAIN! PANIC!" He shouted, his fire flaring a bright orange. It felt good to be able to do that again. He waited a moment, and then added, "You better not make me call your names again!"

"Coming, oh Oneness, coming!" Pain stumbled into sight, followed closely by Panic, who was stammering … something. Hades didn't hear it, because he was too busy blasting the two of them back into the Bronze Age.

Ah, now he really felt better.

Hades blew the smoke off his finger. "And that," he said, "is for that little 'If is good,' exchange, my minions."

"Oh," Panic squeaked – impressive, considering he was currently crispy-fried – "You, uh, heard that, huh?"

"Helloooo, I'm a God, duh! I hear everything. I _know_ everything."

"Hey, then how come you didn't know that Hercules would defeat you, not to mention that his thread couldn't be cut –"

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Panic hissed at Pain desperately. He'd always been the smarter of the two. Not that that was saying much, but still, he generally had a knack for knowing when to keep his trap shut – a talent that Pain distinctly lacked.

Hades briefly considered smiting them again, just for the fun of it, but ultimately decided he had better things to do. "Come along, boys," he said, gliding towards the main room, and his imps skittered behind him, grateful not to be fricasseed again. "We've got plans to make."

"Hmm." It was the first word they'd heard Hades utter in an over an hour. If "Hmm" could be considered a word, that is. After telling him how long he'd been swirling around with the dead souls when he'd asked – "Three months," they'd squeaked fearfully, and watched him flare up – the short-tempered, fire-crowned Lord of the Underworld had been surprisingly calm. He'd been studying the pieces on his game board, only this time, instead of representing Hercules and various monsters, each playing piece was a different Olympian god. He'd hold one of the figures in his hand, look at it very hard, as if trying to memorize its features, and then, more often than not, place it back on the board with a sigh. A few times, he seem to be struck by some kind of inspiration, and his flame brightened accordingly, but then he'd appear to dismiss whatever he'd been considering, put the figurine down, and move on to the next piece. At one point, Pain started to ask a question, but Panic clamped his hand over Pain's mouth, shooting him a warning look, and he fell silent. Fortunately, Hades seemed to pay them no attention, although they both watched him expectantly. Hades continued on in this fashion, seeming to make no progress towards reaching any kind of decision, until he got the figurine that represented Demeter.

He picked it up, shrugged, and was about to set it down again when –

"THAT'S IT!"

The room was bright as Hades' flame flashed a brilliant blue.

"What's it?" Pain asked before Pain could stop him. Fortunately for both of them, Hades was only too happy to explain.

"Leverage boys, leverage!" Hades answered, seeming quite pleased with himself. "Leverage against Demeter, to make her do my bidding!"

"Demeter?" Panic squeaked. "But she's –"

"I know, I know right? See, that's why it's so brilliant. I mean, come on, no one would suspect her, the Goddess of the Spring, to be in league with me, the Dread Lord of the Underworld –"

"Actually," Pain interjected, "I think she's Goddess of the Harvest."

"Pfft." Hades waved his hand. "Spring, harvest, whatever, same difference. The point is," he grinned, "that I will have something that will, shall we say, compel her cooperation."

The two imps looked at him blankly. Hades sighed. "The kid," he explained. "The kid is the key."

"B-b-but Hercules isn't a kid anymore –"

"I'm not talking about Zeus' kid!" Hades flared. "I'm talking about Demeter's kid, you morons! That innocent little boy of hers."

"Actually," Panic couldn't stop himself from saying, "forgive me for my boldness, boss, but I'm pretty sure Demeter has a girl."

"No she doesn't –" Hades began angrily, and then stopped himself. Now that he thought about it, that was actually right. Demeter had a girl, not a boy. For once, one of his minions was right. Well, first time for everything, he supposed.

"Oh yeah, it was a girl for her. Well, godlings, who can keep 'em straight, am I right? In any case, it doesn't change our plans." He grinned evilly at his minions, who grinned nervously back. "We are gonna kidnap Demeter's kid, and hold her for ransom until we get our dear Goddess of the Harvest to do exactly what I want."

"Now," Hades continued, snapping his fingers. "First things first, what was the kid's name again? It was – okay, okay, don't tell me, I know this – starts with a P, right? Something, something … Peanut? Petunia? Porcupine? I know it was something like that, what was it?"

"Persephone?" Panic supplied helpfully.

"Yes! That's it! Persephone!" Hades chuckled. "Poor kid. She won't know what hit her."

*TBC. Please review!*


	2. Chapter 2

Let it Burn

Chapter Two: Careful What You Wish For

Persephone was bored.

Not that being bored was a new feeling for her; far from it. Between milling aimlessly about Olympus and half-heartedly helping her mother in her duties as Harvest Goddess for about the zillionth time, Persephone often felt like she lived her life in a state of perpetual boredom. And anytime something even remotely interesting threatened to happen anywhere near her vicinity, her over-protective, overbearing mother would "tuck her away somewhere safe" (often among some dull mortals) until the fun was all over. Like the recent takeover attempt on Olympus, for example. Even now, months later, she wondered what it would have been like, to have been on Olympus when it happened, to see the magnificent, terrifying Titans unleashed, to see the shock and anger on Zeus' face as Hades rode on his dread chariot … even now, the idea made her shiver with a combination of fear and excitement.

She'd heard Hades had been cast into the river of souls by Zeus' son Hercules, and that, if and when he emerged, Zeus had declared, in his infinite wisdom, that his brother's "little swim" would be the extent of his punishment. Well, that and eternal exile from Olympus – unless Zeus changed his mind about the eternity part, and most doubted he would. She wondered if the permanent banishment would bother the Lord of the Underworld when he heard of it. She herself felt the same way about Olympus as she often felt about her mother – the place was confining, dull, and mind-numbingly familiar, but at the same time, a part of her loved it, a part of her belonged to it, just as she belonged to the Spring, the flowers, the trees, the very essence of nature that was her mother's domain. Still, there was another part of her that felt … out of place. Something whispered in her, in the darkest corners of her mind, that she didn't belong here, that she would never belong here, that some other place was calling her home.

Usually she told herself that those feelings had to do with not really having an official job, like the rest of the fully grown deities. Sure, being mommy's little helper had been fine when she was a mere godling, but no matter how much her mother liked to pretend otherwise, she was all grown up now. She needed to find her own way, and get out from under her mother's (green) thumb. Her lack of station was starting to get embarrassing. She knew the other gods were gossiping about her, and even Zeus had once or twice "politely" suggested to her mother that "maybe it's time for your girl to get some direction in life," although of course he couldn't be bothered to offer a specific suggestion. Too busy throwing around lighting bolts or something, Persephone supposed.

But he was still right. She needed a direction, more desperately than he or anyone else could possibly know. And after all this time, it still shamed Persephone to think that even if she put to use what meager skills she possessed, she would still only be duplicating her mother's job.

Well, at least shame was a different feeling than boredom.

And so here she was again, aimless, unimportant, in the meadows near Enna. She loved this place. She hated this place. Like everything else, it was … familiar.

Persephone knelt down and plucked a flower. It was beautiful. She'd seen it before. She inhaled its scent. It was pleasant. She smelled it before. Persephone sighed, and closed her eyes, and wished that once, just once, something, _anything _unexpected would happen to her.

"You sure that's her?"

Hades' eyes were fixed, somewhat disbelievingly, on the young woman in the meadow. Her skin was white as bone; that much he knew for certain. Her hair and eye color he could not tell, because they seemed to change with each shade and shadow and flash of the sun. It was really quite … unsettling. He was also pretty sure that she was not Aphrodite's favorite person, because, although the Goddess of Love was loathe to admit it, she got pretty steamed when any female, mortal or otherwise, even had a chance of claiming to rival her in the looks department.

And Hades had to admit, after setting his sights on her, that the daughter of Demeter could definitely give Aphrodite a run for her money.

"I'm sure boss, it's her." Panic sounded nervous, but then, he always sounded nervous. "I checked."

"And I double-checked!" Pain added, never one to let Panic take all the credit.

"You did not!" Panic snapped. "Stop stealing my thunder."

"Stealing your thunder? Who do you think you are, Zeus?"

"That – that doesn't even make sense!"

"Yes it does!" Pain tapped his head. "Think about it," he added huffily.

Hades paid his bickering minions no heed. He supposed he shouldn't have, but somehow, he thought Demeter's daughter would still be a child. He hadn't quite expected … this.

But hey, it didn't really matter how old she was anyway, did it? Staring at her from afar wasn't getting the job done. Time for his imps to do their work.

"Pain, Panic," he began, talking over his still bickering underlings, "Boys, I really don't care who checked or double-checked, I need you two to – enough of this now – come on – I SAID QUIT IT!" Hades flared up, zapping both them into silence. He rolled his eyes.

"Oy, minions."

"We're sorry!"

"Really sorry!"

Hades sighed. "Oh forget it. If you want something done right …" Hades didn't usually like to get his hands dirty, but considering how Pain and Panic had bungled the "turn Hercules mortal" scheme so badly, maybe it was best he handled this matter personally.

Hades emerged from beneath the earth just as Persephone knelt, flower in hand, eyes closed, making her silent wish. She barely had time for her eyes to snap open in terror before he grabbed her and they plunged back into the Underworld. She certainly did not have time to scream, much less put up any kind of a fight.

And somewhere, seeing it all, knowing it all, the three Fates smiled. "Well, no one can say we don't have a sense of irony."


	3. Chapter 3

Let it Burn

Author's Note: Please review. My muse, she is hungry for feedback!

Chapter Three: Welcome to the Underworld

"What do you think you're _doing_?" Persephone screamed at Hades. For such a slight, slender thing, she had quite the booming voice. It rang all through the caverns of the Underworld.

And even though she was angry, it sounded like music …

Okay, that was … a weird thought to have. Hades shook his head, as if to clear it, and focused on the goddess in front of him. Persephone was breathing heavily, doing her best to look dignified and angry, but he could see her fear underneath.

"W-well? I demand an answer! How – how dare you?"

"How dare I what?"

"What do you mean, 'what?' I was innocently picking flowers in a field –"

Hades snickered. "Seriously? 'Innocently picking flowers in a field?' What is this, storybook land? Okay, let me guess, next a bluebird came by, and you two sang a duet!"

Persephone ignored his snide remark, continuing as if he hadn't spoken" – And then you – you – take me prisoner!"

"Well, personally, I think 'involuntary guest' sounds a lot nicer, but I guess if you wanna get technical about it, well yeah, I kinda did."

"Why?"

The question stopped Hades short. She was all wide eyes and pale skin, so pale that she seemed to glow in the dreary shadows of the Underworld. For an instant, the thin sheen of anger covering her fear was stripped away. Divested of any bravado or pretense, there was only the sheer earnestness of the question, the bare intensity of her _need_ to know, to understand …

What was this girl goddess of anyway? He had a feeling it was something big.

"Well uh, see, here's the thing, babe –"

"My name is not babe!" Persephone snapped, recovering some of her composure.

"Yeah I know it's not, it's …" She looked at him incredulously. "Um …"

"Seriously?" Persephone asked. Annoyance began to creep in to her tone, replacing the fear. "You just abducted me, and you don't even know my name?"

Hades didn't know why he was beginning to get nervous. "Sure I do. It's … Porcupine?"

"Porcupine!" Persephone fumed, her cheeks flushing red in anger. Boy, did she look cute when she was steamed. Hades blinked. Another weird thought. Where in Tartarus did _that_ one come from? _Focus!_ What was her name?

"Prosepina?" He ventured. Nope, apparently that wasn't it either. And whoa, she was really fuming now. "Hey, come on, I was close that time, wasn't I? Easy there …"

"My name," she shouted, "Is Persephone!"

"Yeah, that's what I said, right? Hades, Lord of the Dead, hey, hi, how ya doin'?" Hades extended his hand, which Persephone looked at as though it was a pile of Cereberus' leavings.

"I know who you are," she said coolly. "What I don't know is why you've brought me here."

"Well ya see babe, it's nothing personal, it's just, you know, I sort of need this teensy weensy little favor from your mother –"

"My mother?" Persephone blinked. And then, "Oh, you want something from my mother. Of course." She sighed. For a just a minute, she had thought someone might want her in her own right, and not just for what her mother might do for them. She should have known better.

Hades was surprised that Persephone seemed so dejected. "You can forget it, you know," she continued in the same deflated tone. "My mother won't negotiate with the likes of you. She'll simply make you wish you'd never messed with me, her precious little flower." Again, she surprised Hades, with the distinct bitterness in her voice. Still, he scoffed at her.

"Oh please, what is she gonna do, rain deadly blossoms down at me from on high?"

"Don't underestimate the power of nature." There was an alluringly steely edge to Persephone's voice now.

"Well, I guess your mommy dearest would know about that stuff." There was a beat of awkward silence. "Uh, speaking of which, what exactly are _you_ goddess of, if I may ask?"

"Me?" Now it was Persephone's turn to be awkward. "I um, well I uh, you see, the thing about that is …"

Oh man, she was even cuter when she flustered. This was too good. "Don't tell me you don't have a specialty?"

"I – I just haven't found my niche yet, alright!" Persephone snapped.

Hades chuckled. "Oh, you poor kid."

"I am _not_ a kid!"

"Well, kids are the ones that don't have specialties. Therefore, you, my sweet, are a kid. A mere godling, if you will." That really got her fuming again. Hades was finding that he quite enjoyed winding her up.

"If you_ ever_ call me 'godling' again –!"

"Oh relax, doll-face, I'm sure you'll find your thing any century now."

"If you let me out of this dank pit I would!"

"Babe, I'll let you as soon as your _mommy _agrees to my terms."

"My mother is _not_ going to help you defeat Zeus."

Hades blinked. "How did you know –"

Persephone snorted derisively. "Oh please, like it could be anything else. You have to be the most predictable god in the entire pantheon. Did you ever think maybe you should find a new hobby, Hades? Because I gotta tell ya, this whole 'attempt to usurp my brother and rule the cosmos' habit of yours isn't really the most productive way to spend your time."

"At least _I _have a specialty!" Hades shot back. Boy, was she a sharp little tack. Where had Demeter been hiding her? "And haven't you ever heard the phrase, 'If at first you don't succeed, try, try again?'"

"And haven't you ever heard the phrase, _return me to the surface this instant_, or I'll – I'll –"

"You'll what, Persephone?"

She shivered. Now that he'd finally gotten her name down, the way he said it, it was like … it was like he was _tasting _it, savoring the sound of it on his tongue. He said her name like … like he owned it, or something. Like it belonged to him.

"I'll think of something," Persephone whispered.

Geez, even her _whisper _was melodic. How was it possible she wasn't a full-fledged goddess yet?

Outwardly, Hades showed no trace of his thoughts, and shrugged. "Well, until you do," he said softly, "you may as well get comfortable here. So howz about I give you the tour?" Again, he extended his hand, and this time, he thought that she looked at it differently.

Almost as if she were in a trance, she reached out to take his hand. Then, at the last minute, she seemed to think better of it, snatching her hand back as though she was afraid it might get burned.

"Fine," she said stiffly, and strode ahead of him, leaving Hades standing there, somewhat nonplussed.

"Well?" Persephone's voice wafted back towards him. "Are you gonna show me around this dump or what?"

Hades rolled his eyes. This kid was gonna be a handful. "Coming, dear," he muttered, and hastened to follow her.


	4. Chapter 4

Let it Burn

Chapter Four: An Unexpected Detour

"So … that's it?"

"What do you mean, 'that's it?' I just showed you the entire Underworld! Well, most of it anyway. The important parts." Geez, was this girl hard to impress.

Not that he was trying to impress her, or anything.

Persephone put her hand on her hip. "What about the river of souls?" She smirked as Hades shuddered. "You know, the place where you took your little, shall we say, impromptu little swim?"

"Uh yeah babe, you're not funny, and that's not on the tour."

"Oooh, I get it, you're scared to show me."

Hades fire smoldered dangerously. "I. Am. Not."

"Prove it."

Hades sighed. What a pain she was! But still, he wouldn't have her thinking he was scared of his own realm. "Fine, fine" he huffed. "Follow me then, little godling."

"_Persephone_!"

"Whatever."

He took her to the place he had showed Jerkules when he'd come to retrieve Meg. He was rather pleased to see that some of the fear she'd discarded earlier was creeping back into her features.

"Is this," she asked softly, the sharp edge gone from her voice, "Where you fell?"

Hades swallowed. "Yup," he managed.

Persephone took a few steps closer to the edge, peering down, trying to make out the figures of the mortal souls far beneath. "It sure looks like a long way down."

"Oh believe me, it is." Hades cleared his throat. "Okay, so you've seen it. Now let's get out of here."

She turned to look at him, the little smirk back on her face. "Oh, and I thought you weren't afraid."

"Persephone, come on." Hades was beginning to get annoyed, and quite suddenly, he didn't like how close she was standing to the edge. "I'm not kidding, let's go."

The young goddess rolled her eyes. "Ugh, you sound like my mother." The smirk was more pronounced now. "And I don't listen to her either." Deliberately, she leaned further over the edge, and Hades began to feel slightly sick.

"Persephone –"

He didn't quite know the exact instant at which she lost her balance. All he knew was that one moment, she was standing there, and the next, she was gone, only her scream remaining as she plunged into the river below.

He heard her hit the water, and then: "No, no, please let me go! I can't – I can't help you – no please stop, it hurts – please – help me help me!" And then there were no more words, just a strangled, helpless cry as Persephone struggled to break free of the confused and desperate souls clawing at her, surrounding her, smothering her as they tried to drag her down into the depths.

Damn it, he'd _warned _her! Now what was he supposed to do, dive in and save her?

No way. _No way._ She was a goddess, she could damn well get out on her own. After all, no one had helped _him_ out of there, had they? This served her right for goading him, mocking him, not listening when he told her –

"Please …" Her voice was barely a whisper now, but he could still hear it. She made a sound somewhere between a sob and whimper.

Hades put his face in his hands. "Oy. I cannot _believe_ I am doing this …" Lifting his head, he looked down at the water, took a deep breath, and plunged in after her.

It was pretty difficult to maintain coherent thought after that. He felt the familiar panic rise in his throat, until he caught sight of her white arm, dangling just out of reach. Doing his best to ignore the slimy souls clinging to him, he extended his hand, and this time, she took it, clutching desperately. He got a glimpse of her wide, terrified eyes, which briefly flashed a shade of brilliant blue, and then somehow, they were making their way towards the shore, emerging soaked and shivering on the rocks.

_Right back where I started_, Hades thought. So much for never again. He turned to Persephone, intending to snap at her, but stopped cold at the sight of her. She was shivering and shaking, and what's more, she was actually _clinging _to him, like she was afraid to let go for fear she'd fall in again.

"Oh, oh, I was so scared …" She gasped, and then she buried her face in his shoulder, sobbing.

Despite himself, Hades' arm went around her. "Hey, hey, come on, it's okay, you're … you're safe now." He drew her closer, and she curled to his side, still shivering. He had no idea what he was doing, really, but after a while, it seemed liked it must be working, because her sobs gradually subsided. Eventually, she looked up at him, and she spoke.

"Your … hair …"

Self-consciously, his hand went to his head. "Whoa, is my hair out?" He shook his head slightly, and the shock of blue flame returned. "There. Better, right?" She didn't even nod. And he couldn't help but notice she was still clinging to him. "You um, you okay?"

"I …" she began shakily. "Uh, yes, I think so." She shuddered. "But that was …"

"Awful. Yeah, I know. Been there, done that." He stood up and offered her his hand. Again, she took it, rising quite unsteadily, leaning heavily on him for support.

"You were stuck in there for three months?" She asked in a horrified whisper.

"Yeah," Hades said grimly. "Seemed like longer." Poor kid still looked pretty freaked out. Suddenly, he had an idea. "Come with me."

Too shell-shocked to put up any kind of an argument, Persephone went with him, still holding on to him and letting him carry most of her weight. They walked for a little while, until the dreary scenery of the Underworld gradually seemed to brighten, and finally, they came to a sort of shimmering barrier, through which Persephone could see what seemed to be a representation of one of the more idyllic locations on Earth. It reminded her of the fields by Enna, actually.

"What is it?"

"Elysian Fields. It's um … well, it's sort of the only real 'nice' part of the Underworld. Basically, this is where all the goody-goody mortals go when they die."

"Oh," Persephone said softly, the beginnings of a smile gracing her features. "It's … pretty."

Hades shrugged. "Well, yeah, if you go for that sort of thing." He paused. "Why don't you uh, go on in, take a look around?"

She looked at him in surprise. "You mean I can enter? But the barrier –"

"The barrier's for mortals, babe, the kind that are on Zeus' 'naughty' list and have to stay on this side. You're a goddess, it won't have any effect on you."

"Oh." Persephone looked at Hades and seemed to realize for the first time that she was clinging to him. She quickly separated herself, a telltale blush creeping onto her cheeks, leaving Hades feeling strangely … cold. Must have been the after-effects of his latest 'swim,' he supposed. She turned and tentatively reached a hand towards the barrier. Her fingers slid through seamlessly, as though nothing was there. Her smile brightened.

She turned back to Hades. "You aren't coming?" She asked.

"Oh. Uh, no. It's not really my scene." Well, that, and the last time he tried to tour the Elysian Fields, in attempt to convince himself that running the Underworld didn't have to be so gloomy and depressing, the mortals dwelling there had run screaming in terror, assuming he had come to drag them back over to the other side to experience torment for some long-forgotten transgressions. Suffice it to say, there was a great deal of confusion before things got straightened out, and Hades made a hasty retreat from the lighter side of his domain. He hadn't gone to the Fields since. In fact, this was the closest he'd come to them in centuries.

"Go on," he told Persephone gently. "It's fine, the mortals won't mind you. I'll come get you later."

"But how will I –"

"Just call my name when you're ready to return, and I'll be here."

"Okay." She nodded, and Hades turned to leave.

"Hades?"

That voice. Where did she get that voice? Certainly not from her shrill mother. "Yeah?"

And then suddenly, she was at his side again, her arms briefly clasped around his neck, her breath warm on his face. She whispered, "Thank you," and he felt her soft lips brush his cheek. Then she turned and glided through the barrier, into the mortal equivalent of paradise.

Hades stood there, completely stunned. After a moment, he raised a hand to his face, gingerly touching the spot on his cheek where she had kissed him. He couldn't believe that she had actually …

_Okay, whoa, hold on here_, Hades thought. Why was he letting himself get all worked up over a stupid little kiss? She was just relieved he'd gotten her out of the soul slime, that was all. She probably would've kissed a cactus if it had gotten her out of the muck. Besides, he needed to focus on what was important. _Ruling the cosmos._ Yes, that was what mattered. Persephone was just a means to an end.

He repeated that to himself as he turned away, fully intending to get some infernal work done, ignoring that niggling little voice in the back of his head that said the young goddess was much, much more.


	5. Chapter 5

Let it Burn

Author's Note: If you have time to favorite this fic, you surely have time to review it. Just sayin'.

Chapter Five: Settling In

The Elysian Fields were beautiful.

Serene, peaceful. Full of happy mortals, and all the things said mortals could wish for. No darkness, no shadow. No conflict or chaos. Just a simple, dreamlike bliss.

Persephone was bored already.

She gazed out to the other side, towards the cold, dark, gloomy area that made up the majority of the Underworld. It was a foreboding place, intimidating, perhaps even terrifying, but definitely not boring.

"Hades," she said.

Close by her, a panicked mortal ghost looked up. "Where?"

"No, I mean I'm calling him."

"Why? What did I do? Please, spare me, I've paid for all my sins I swear –"

"No, no, I mean I'm calling him to come get me! Relax. Yeesh." Mortals could be so jumpy, even when they were dead.

True to his word, Hades materialized, and the mortal shrank away despite her assurances. She reached her hand through the barrier to take his, and she emerged from the Elysian Fields.

"So … what do you think?"

"Huh?"

"Of the Fields. What do you think?"

"Oh." Persephone considered a moment. "Very nice. I can see why mortals would want to end up here. But, I mean, after a while, it gets a little …"

"Tedious? Boring? Dull?"

"All of the above." Persephone smiled slightly. "Thank you again for …" she paused, not quite knowing how to continue. "So, have you contacted my mother?"

"What? Oh yeah, um, not just yet … I had, you know, there was a ton of paperwork to catch up on, all these new souls coming in …" He paused. "I guess you're getting pretty antsy to leave then, huh?"

"I didn't say that."

For a moment, she thought she saw a gleam of pleased surprise in his eyes, but it was gone too quickly for her to be sure.

"Well, anyway, let's get out of here."

Together, they walked back towards the Underworld proper. Out of the corner of her eye, Persephone caught a flash of color – sort of pinkish, she thought. Then another flash, this time a sort of greenish-blue. She paused, and Hades came to a stop beside her. They looked up, to find two pairs of yellow eyes looking down at them curiously.

"That's her?" Pain asked Panic in a stage whisper. They had found her for the boss, but hadn't gotten a good look at her until now.

"Yeah." Panic confirmed.

"She's pretty."

"Told you."

_Oh for the love of_ … Hades rolled eyes. "Boys, we can _see_ you."

"And we can hear you," Persephone added. Unlike Hades, she sounded amused rather than annoyed. "Why don't you come down and say hello?"

The two imps looked at Hades questioningly.

"Well come on, you heard the lady, get your butts down here already."

The two imps scampered down from their perch and stood before the two goods.

"Persephone, this is –"

"Pain!"

"And Panic!"

"Reporting for duty!" They chorused.

Persephone giggled. "They're cute," she said.

"Cute?" Hades echoed incredulously. "Seriously?"

"Did you hear that?" Panic whispered to Pain. "She thinks we're cute!"

_Oy_. Why was it that the imps thought they couldn't be heard when they whispered?

"These are my minions," he explained to Persephone. "Not the brightest bulbs in the bunch, but hey, they're housebroken. Mostly."

"Can we get you anything?"

"Water?"

"Brimstone?"

"Pomegranate?"

Persephone laughed lightly. "No thanks, I'm fine for now."

The two imps nodded, smiling back at her rather dazedly.

"Boys," Hades said pointedly. "Don't you have some work to do?"

"Right!" Panic said nervously.

"Sorry boss, we'll get right on it!" Pain said, and they scampered off.

"Did you see they were holding hands?" Panic "whispered" excitedly to Pain as they retreated.

Hades and Persephone glanced down at their joined hands and realized he was right. Their hands quickly dropped apart. Persephone cleared her throat.

"Hades, I was wondering, if I'm going to be here for a while, maybe you could … find something for me to do?"

"To do? Well uh, sorry to tell ya, babe, but it's the Underworld, we're kinda short on entertainment here, you know what I mean? Unless you like watching torment or something, which I don't think would really be your bag, but hey, who knows? Other than that, I mean, like you said, even the Fields get boring pretty quick, but I suppose I could find –"

"Hades, stop," she said gently. That was a lot of rambling, even for him. If she didn't know any better, she would have thought he felt as flustered as she did. "I didn't mean entertainment. I meant something to do. As in actual work." Hades blinked in surprise.

"Whoa. Wait. You want to … work … in the Underworld?"

"Why not? I am, as you said, an 'involuntary guest,' so I might as well make myself useful. I may not have a specialty, but that doesn't mean all I did topside was lounge around or go looking for amusement. I'm not lazy. I helped my mother with her duties all the time."

Hades snorted. "No offense babe, but helping out with the _harvest_ is a little different from working in the Underworld. It's a tough gig, honey."

"Well, from what I've heard from the other gods, you sure complain about it enough." Again, she took what seemed to be her default "defiant" pose, chin jutted out, hand on her hip. "What's the matter, Hades? Is it that you think I can't do it … or you're afraid that I can? Maybe I'll prove that running the Underworld isn't as difficult as you make it seem?"

Hades bristled. "Let's get something straight, little godling –"

"_Persephone!_"

"You are not going to be_ running_ the Underworld – I may not like it much, but _that_ is still _my_ job, okay?"

"So does that mean you're going to give me a job of my own?"

Hades sighed. "Fine, I'll have Pain and Panic put you through orientation, and then you can help with soul assortment."

"Good."

They shook on it. "No foul-ups, all right? I get enough of those with Pain and Panic."

"Please," Persephone scoffed. "I'm a _goddess_. It'll be a piece of cake."

It wasn't.

"Quiet, quiet! No shoving! Now, everyone will get their turn – hey, I said form a _line_, people, not stand around staring at each other's sandals!" The souls looked dazedly around at each other.

"NOW!" Persephone shouted, and that finally seemed to scare them enough to listen to her.

Persephone sighed. Only a few weeks on the job, and she already felt exhausted. After dealing with the confused, stubborn, and disgruntled souls, she was starting to understand why Hades was so famously short-tempered. To her at least, mortals had been a sharp enough bunch when they were among the living, but they seemed to be stupid and slow once they joined the ranks of the dead – well, at least for a while. It was long enough to drive even the most sedate deity completely bonkers, as far as she was concerned. Sure, on some level she could understand why they weren't too quick on the uptake, figuring it had something to do with the jarring transition between life and death. But after facing about the zillionth soul staring blankly at her and asking "Huh?" after she'd calmly, clearly, and simply explained the sorting process, her sympathy and patience were wearing thin.

A part of her really wanted to quit. But there was no way she'd allow herself to do that.

Especially since_ he_ was watching her. Oh, he pretended not to – pretended to be too busy doing other "more important" things – but he knew she was always watching, waiting for her to fail utterly, or to just give up. Well, he could wait for all eternity, as far as she was concerned. She would _not_ quit. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction.

Still, she was glad that the imps were coming to relieve her for the day. "Hey, boys. Ready to clean up my mess?"

"But you did a good job today, Miss Persephone!" Panic squeaked. The imps had previously addressed her by a variety of increasingly ridiculous titles ("Your Kidnapped-ness" being one example), until she instructed them to call her by her name – partly because she knew it would annoy Hades, and she found she rather enjoyed getting under his skin. They hadn't quite been comfortable with addressing her so informally, however, and so together they had come to the compromise of "Miss Persephone." True, it didn't annoy Hades as much, but at least she was spared any more of their silly honorifics.

"Thanks Panic, but I think we both know that's not true."

"No, but you really did!" Pain insisted, and Panic nodded in agreement. "Really, you're getting better every day!"

"Every hour!" Panic added.

"Every minute!" Pain shouted, and Panic shot him a dirty look.

"Every _second_!" Panic retorted. Pain glared at him.

"Every –"

"Boys, boys, it's not a competition!" She patted their heads affectionately, and they smiled dreamily up at her. "Thanks for your support, both of you. See you later." She strode away, happy to be done for another day.

Panic sighed. "She's so nice."

"Yeah," Pain said wistfully. "I wish she could stay forever."

"Maybe …"

"What?"

"Ah, forget it. Nothing. Just a silly little thought … never gonna happen."

Persephone retreated wearily to the main room and sat down heavily on Hades' throne. After a little while, Hades glided into the room. She didn't look up until he rather loudly cleared his throat.

"Excuse me?" He gave her a pointed look, and she returned it with a deliberately innocent, questioning gaze.

"What?"

"What do you mean what? You're in my seat!"

A little smile played around the corners of Persephone's mouth as she looked over the seat in question.

"Really? Hmm. Well, I don't see your name on it anywhere."

"Oh for – look, this isn't the playground, babe, this is the Underworld! _My_ Underworld, in fact! And that's _my_ seat!"

Persephone shrugged, enjoying watching him fume. "Don't care."

Hades' fire flared dangerously bright. Any mortal (not to mention several deities) probably would have been frightened by this point. Persephone, however, found herself amused rather than terrified. She'd learned very quickly that getting a rise out of Hades was great fun.

"Get. Out. Of. My. Chair."

Persephone leaned forward. "Make me," she challenged.

"Okay fine, you asked for it!" In a flash, Hades was before her, his hands fastened around her waist as he tried to physically pull her from the chair. She proved to be stronger than she looked, however, gripping the arms of the chair so firmly that Hades couldn't fully lift her from it.

"Let go of the chair!"

"Never!" He had expected her to be angry, or scared, or both, but instead, she was actually - laughing! "I swear on the scared rights of Spring, I shall never surrender this chair to you, oh Dread Lord of the Underworld! Never shall you recline in comfort again! You shall have to stand … or lie down … or get another chair …" she dissolved into giggles.

"Persephone, this is not funny!" He said, trying hard to maintain his irritation, but she only laughed harder. "Well, okay, maybe it is, a little …" despite himself, he started to laugh too. "You are such a drama queen."

"Drama queen? I'm not the one that was throwing a hissy fit over a chair!"

"I was not throwing a hissy fit!" Hades objected, but there was no real anger in his words. He noticed that Persephone had relaxed, loosening her grip on the arms of the chair, and he seized the opportunity to lift her out of it.

"Hey!"

"But it _is_ my chair," he smirked triumphantly as she wriggled half-heartedly in his arms. After a minute, she ceased struggling and looked up at him, steadying herself, her hands on his shoulders. Then neither of them was laughing anymore. Suddenly, Persephone realized how close he was holding her.

She also realized that she didn't mind it, not at all. Quite the opposite, actually.

"Should I let you go?" He asked softly.

"I …"

"Should I let you go, Persephone?" Even now, the way he said her name still made her feel … she didn't know what. She just knew she didn't want him to let her go. She wanted him to …

"Boss! Boss!" Panic came dashing into the room, followed closely by Pain. The two imps skidded to a stunned halt, however, at the sight of the two gods in what appeared to be an embrace.

Panic smiled nervously. "Um, are we interrupting –"

"WHAT?" Hades bellowed. He was going to _kill_ them. Both of them. And then he was going to bring them back to life, just so he could kill them again. Of all the … worst timing ever, those two. _Worst timing ever._

Reluctantly, he released Persephone as Pain began, "There was a plague – a plague in Thebes –"

"So?" Hades snapped. "Plagues happen all the time."

"No boss, it's like that one last century, you know, the watchamacallit –"

"The one that hit all those kids!" Panic interjected. "We got tons of childrens' souls coming, boss, no parents or anything …" his voice trailed off helplessly.

Persephone turned to look at Hades. There was an expression on his face she didn't recognize.

"Oh no," he muttered, "Not again."

And then a wailing rose from the Underworld, a wailing such as Persephone had never heard before, a sound that pierced her heart and chilled her to her very soul. The sound of countless children screaming, sobbing, crying for their parents … it was awful.

Hades swallowed. "I gotta go, babe. You can have the chair." He started to leave, Pain and Panic following behind.

"Hades wait," she said, and he turned back to her. She took a deep breath. "Let me help."

Hades shook his head. "Babe … Persephone … look. I know you think you need to prove something to me, or maybe to yourself, I don't know. But this … you shouldn't … you don't have to do this."

"I know I don't," she said, apprehensive but resolute. "I want to."

Hades appeared to consider for a moment. "Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you." He offered her his arm, and she took it. His expression was grim, but determined.

"Let's get to work."


	6. Chapter 6

Let It Burn

Chapter Six: The Binding

Author's Note: I am well aware that the back story I am presenting here is not 'correct' according to Greek myth. Please keep in my mind that I am taking creative liberties with the source material, just like Disney did. Feel free to criticize my adaptation, but please don't point how I got the story "wrong." I am fairly familiar with the mythology; I am simply changing it to suit my own whims.

Never had Persephone been so exhausted in her entire life.

No, she wasn't sure if exhausted even began to cover how she felt. She was drained, body, mind, and spirit, completely depleted of all reserves of energy.

Earlier, she had thought she was beginning to understand Hades' frustration with ruling the Underworld. She had been wrong. She hadn't understood; she couldn't have, until this.

She remembered – and a long time ago it seemed at present – the look on his face when Pain and Panic had told him what was happening. The look she couldn't fathom, as he said "Not again."

She understood now.

Hades was not the kindest of deities, she knew. He could be mean, ruthless even. And he typically did not have any sympathy for the souls which made their way to his realm. Sometimes, he even seemed to relish their torment.

But Persephone knew with absolute certainty that he had taken no pleasure in what had just happened.

Plagues such as the one that hit Thebes were known to be especially deadly to the young. To have the Underworld overwhelmed by the confused, frightened souls of children who were screaming for their mothers … it was more than any god could bear, or Persephone herself could describe. Hades had told her sometime during their work, back when they were both still capable of speech, that the one good thing was that the kids were automatically admitted to the Elysian Fields.

The problem was getting them there.

The children were terrified – of Hades, of the imps – of every part of Tartarus, even of Persephone herself. She, along with the others, often found herself resorting to flinging their souls unceremoniously into the River of Lethe. What's more, she didn't even feel remotely guilty about doing it. Surely, forgetfulness was preferable to terror, and besides, they proceeded to the Fields much more quietly and calmly after that.

She didn't know how long the work went on. It could have been hours, days or weeks for all she knew, or all she cared. Time ceased to have any meaning. Gradually, however, the steady stream of young souls seemed to slow to a trickle, and as she guided the last young boy to the Fields, she met Hades' eyes, to see him nodding wearily. It was finally over.

Wordlessly, Hades and Persephone staggered into Hades' throne room, their arms around each for support. There was nothing romantic about it; indeed, the imps were trailing behind them, clinging to each other in much the same manner. Not one of them spoke; she'd never seen Hades so quiet for so long.

She was vaguely aware at some point that she and Hades had collapsed together on the throne. The imps had plopped unceremoniously onto the floor nearby, and immediately succumbed to sleep. Instinctively, she curled into Hades' embrace, seeking warmth, some measure of comfort, some sort of wordless reassurance that this was over, and they were both alive. She sought some possibility of feeling something other than that dull ache of lifelessness and hopelessness that had pervaded the Underworld for however long this ordeal had gone on. She felt Hades' arm wrap securely around her, and she was grateful. Then she too succumbed to her exhaustion, and remembered nothing more. Persephone's sleep was peaceful and dreamless.

Hades' was not.

He had known the dream had been coming, of course. It always did, after times like this. Hearing those children cry out for their mothers … inevitably, it brought up the memories he had buried deep and ignored for so long. In a way, he almost welcomed the dream.

It was the only way he could remember her.

It wasn't supposed to happen, but it did. His older brothers, Zeus and Poseidon, had gone off to gather the others gods, to marshal their forces for a final assault against Cronus, their terrifying father, who together with his Titans, was reigning chaos down on the world. He had wanted to come too, but his mother Rhea had said he was too young, and his brothers agreed that he should stay with her, be kept safe, be protected.

Rhea. His mother. Their mother. Daughter of the earth and the sky. Beautiful, graceful, immortal.

At least, until Cronus had found her.

Once, he'd been told, their father Cronus had not been as he, Hades, has always known him. He had not been insane with power, driven by the desire to destroy his own sons. Over the years, he'd heard different stories. One tale was that it was a prophecy from the Fates that had brought him to this, that they had warned he would be overthrown by his children, just as he had overthrown his own father. Another story was that madness had crept upon him gradually, infecting him like a disease. A contradictory rumor had it that the madness had come suddenly and unexpectedly, like a thief in the night, and it was the Titans who were the real culprits and the real enemy.

In any case, amidst all these stories, the main idea was that at the beginning, Cronus, Rhea, and their sons had supposedly been a happy family, far from the nightmarish parody of one that they'd become. But try as he might, Hades could never have imagined how it could have been so. He was too young to remember Cronus as anything other than the terrifying, power-mad, murderous monster he'd become. This was true for Poseidon as well.

Of the three brothers, only the oldest, Zeus, might have been able to remember a time when Cronus was something else, but neither of his younger siblings had ever asked him about it, and he'd never volunteered any insights. In any case, if the Fates' prediction was what had caused all this, it had become a self-fulfilling prophesy. For had Cronus not abused his wife and their sons so horribly, his children never would have been so determined to defeat him. The three brothers were united by their hatred for their father and their love for their mother.

But that unity was not enough to prevent the fall of Rhea.

_Hades remembered his mother binding him, sealing him up and concealing him with her power, for his own protection, as she sensed the arrival of her furious husband. The binding was such that he couldn't move until Cronus had left. So he was forced to watch, helplessly, as his father vented his rage on Rhea, demanding to know where their sons were so he could destroy them, cursing her and blaming her for everything. In the end, from his place in the dark, through a narrow slit of light, he could see his mother, crumpled on the floor. And then, for one terrifying moment, the face of his father was before him, glowing yellow eyes so much like his own, probing, searching, but unable to see him, thanks to his mother. An instant later, there was a flash of light, and Cronus was gone._

_Hades burst from the shadows and ran over to his mother. He was young then, a mere godling, though his head was already topped in flame. He stopped in his tracks, staring in disbelief at what he saw._

_He didn't know how his father had done it. Even now, centuries later, he still wasn't entirely sure. He, his parents, his brothers – they were immortal. At least, they were supposed to be. And yet, here lay Rhea, wounded, her godly essence pouring out of her, like blood would pour out of a mortal body run through with a sword. Her breathing was shallow, and her eyes were glazed and unfocused, until they settle on her youngest son.*_

"_Hades," she gasped. She tried to reach out and clasp his face, but she didn't have the strength, and her hand dropped back down the ground. "My little one … you must … go find your brothers …"_

"_No," Hades managed in a whisper, shaking his head. He knew what was happening._

"_You … shouldn't have to see …"_

"_No, mother. I won't leave you. I won't let you die alone."_

_Rhea's eyes fluttered slightly, and she gave a weak smile. "Always so stubborn … just like your brother …" She drew a painful breath, and ceased to speak._

_Rhea was strong, and she did not die quickly. Hades knew exactly how look it took her to expire, because he was there the entire time. He never spoke of it, but he knew, right down to the second, as he sat and watched the life pour out of her._

_She managed to find her voice again, right at the end. "My son," she whispered, "Don't be afraid of death. It is not what you think. This body … this body holding me … we are eternal … all this pain is an illusion. I love you…"_

_Hades could not speak. He could not release the words that were echoing like screams in his head: "No, no, please, mother, I love you, please don't go…"_

_He had done many questionable things in his immortal life, but deep down, he always felt that not speaking out, not saying those words, was what he regretted the most. They were a futile plea, but those words had needed to be said. She was dying, and she had still managed to find her voice, but he couldn't do the same for her. _

_He would never forgive himself for that._

_He didn't know how long he sat with the body until his brothers returned. Poseidon entered the room first and Hades heard him gasp. Behind him Zeus whispered, "No, no …"_

_Hades did not look at them. "She's sleeping," he said numbly._

"_Hades," Poseidon said shakily, putting a hand on his brother's shoulder, "She's … she's not sleeping, bro-bro."_

_Hades swallowed. "Yeah, I know."_

"_We – we have to go." Zeus said behind him, trying and failing to keep the tremor out of his voice. "We have to go right now."_

"_We – we can't just leave her here –"_

"_Poseidon, he's coming back, I can feel it. We have to end this. We have to go!"_

_The urgency in Zeus' voice cut off any further protest from Poseidon. He shook his brother gently. "Come on, we have to go."_

_Hades shook his head. "I'm not leaving," he said._

"_We have to go," Zeus repeated. It seemed to be the only thing he was capable of saying at the moment._

"_I'm not leaving!" Hades shouted, his flame burning red. "I told her I wouldn't leave her –"_

_Zeus grabbed his youngest brother, more roughly than he meant to, and dragged him out despite his protests, with Poseidon trailing worriedly behind. Through a haze of tears, Zeus still managed to hold on to his struggling brother and guided them to his waiting chariot. They were flying straight to Olympus, where they and the other gods would make their final stand against Cronus and his forces._

"_No, no!" Hades screamed. "I said I wouldn't leave her! You can't do this! I hate you, I hate you!" Zeus held Hades to his side until the little godling stopped struggling, and slumped dejectedly in his brother's arms._

"_I'm sorry, little brother," Zeus whispered. "She's gone."_

Mercifully – or regretfully – the dream passed, and the rest of Hades' sleep as dreamless as Persephone's. In fact, he had almost forgotten about the dream when he woke up.

Hades awoke to the pleasant sensation of something warm curled to his side. It took him a moment to realize it was Persephone. When he caught sight of her, his eyes widened, but he did not dare to move, for fear he'd wake her. He couldn't quite believe what he saw.

She was – and there was really no other way to describe this – _snuggled _up to him, her arms curled to his chest, her head resting on his shoulder. He watched, in disbelief, the gentle rise and fall of her chest as she breathed. A stray lock of her hair fell over her face, and he couldn't resist touching it, tucking it back in its place. And then, without thinking, he let his fingers trail across her face, stroking her skin gently. She was so …

Persephone stirred, sighing in her sleep. She shifted, her arms spreading around him, moving until they were face to face. Hades barely dared to breathe. If she opened her eyes right now, she'd probably start screaming and scramble away from him.

Wouldn't she?

He should move, he supposed, before that happened. The trick was to do it without waking her.

It took some doing, but after a time, Hades managed to disentangle himself, however reluctantly, from her embrace. He approached his minions, who like Persephone, were still sleeping. Frowning, he prodded them, and they started awake.

"Hey! Boss!"

"Shh!" Hades quickly shushed them, gesturing towards the throne. "She's still sleeping, you morons!" He said in a low, warning voice. "Be quiet!"

"Sorry," they chorused in a whisper.

"Aww," Panic said, as he looked over at her sleeping form. Pain shook his head.

"I can't believe she went through all that with us. She's really something, huh boss?"

"Yeah," Hades said, in a tone of voice that neither of the imps recognized. "Really something."

"Er, your Flame-fulness?" Panic asked. Hades sighed.

"What now?"

"Can … can we keep her?"

Hades stared at him blankly.

"What?"

"Can we keep her?" Panic asked again.

"Please?" Pain added.

Hades couldn't believe what he was hearing. After all this time, had his imps had fallen for a pretty face?

_She's much more than just a pretty face_, a little voice whispered inside his head. But he did his best to ignore that voice.

"Pain, Panic," he said, as if the imps hadn't spoken. "I need you to go to the surface, check on some things for me, okay?"

"But –what about –"

"_Now_," Hades flared – or well, it would have been a flare, but he was still trying to keep quiet for Persephone's sake, no sense waking the poor girl – so it was really more of a smolder. Still, it was sufficient enough for the imps to get their little butts in gear and follow his orders, leaving him alone in the room with her.

Hades turned to look at her. Everything about her had been so … unexpected. From her beauty to her strength to her wit … he didn't know what he thought Demeter's daughter would have been like, but he had never pictured … this. He couldn't stop himself from asking the question:

"Can_ I_ keep you?" He whispered. "Can I keep you, Persephone?"

*FWIW, I sort of had this song in mind during the death of Rhea: My Skin by Natalie Merchant .com/watch?v=noe7f0MeKyI *


	7. Chapter 7

Let it Burn

Chapter Seven: Letting Go

Hades had wanted to let Persephone rest. He really had.

Unfortunately, that damned mutt of his had other ideas.

For some reason Hades couldn't fathom, the three-headed pup was in an especially rambunctious mood, and had chosen this particular moment to go bounding noisily through the Underworld, chasing … who knew what? Some unlucky stray soul, probably. And naturally, he'd already sent Pain and Panic away, so they weren't around to corral the beast, which meant Hades had to do it.

And he had to admit to himself, he wasn't doing a very good job.

"Cerberus! Down! Sit! Heel! Stay!" He charged after the animal, spewing a litany of commands, all of them ignored. He really needed to invest in a stronger leash. The dog barked happily, seeming to think that being chased by his master was some sort of game. Hades groaned in frustration.

"And I wanted something easy to take care of, like a nice three-headed goldfish, but _noooo _... the boys just _had _to have a dog. And who gets stuck taking care of it? _Me._ Not them. Me!"

Undeterred, the pup continued running. Hades was actually getting worried he might get into the Fields and start scaring the crap out of every soul in there.

Then quite suddenly, a lilting female voice said, finally and authoritatively, "Sit."

And Cerberus sat.

The only time Hades had been more stunned was when Jerkules had emerged alive from the river of death. He looked on in astonishment as the previously uncontrollable pup stayed obediently in place, wagging his tail. And there she was, Persephone, reaching up as the dog eagerly leaned one of his heads down so she could scratch behind his ears.

She smiled. "Good boy," she said.

"He listened to you?" Hades asked incredulously. "_Why?_ He _never_ listens to me! What, what, do you have doggy treats in your pockets or something?"

Persephone laughed, and the sound echoed through the Underworld. That beautiful sound …

He couldn't even begin to admit the effect she was having on him, much less that the feelings she inspired were starting to frighten him. He was the Lord of the Underworld. He didn't feel … this. Or anything else, for that matter.

"I guess I just have a knack with animals," Persephone said.

"What, are you Artemis now?"

"No, but nature _is_ my mother's domain. And nature includes animals, not just plants."

"Oh please, there's nothing natural about this mutt," Hades scoffed, but still, when another one of Cerberus' heads inclined towards him, he did pat the dog and scratch behind his ears, as Persephone had done. For all his complaining, he really was rather fond of the beast – at least, as fond as he allowed himself to be of anything, or anyone.

Speaking of which …

Hades cleared his throat. "So ... how you feeling?"

Persephone's smile faded to a more somber expression. "Better," she said quietly. "Rested, now. Do…" she paused. "Do things like that happen often?"

Hades shrugged. "Too often for my taste," he said. "You know, Zeus and the god squad seem to think I just have the greatest time down here, thriving on mortal torment, and hey, sometimes, that's kinda the case, but that … that was not fun for me, babe."

"I know," she said softly, and he looked at her then, seeing something he hadn't seen in another person's eyes for a very long time: understanding.

And she _did _understand. Hades was stuck down here, surrounded by death and despair. This was his kingdom, his domain. And Zeus? Well, _he_ got to rule over paradise. So it was hardly unexpected that, after all his centuries in the Underworld, Hades would attempt to take Zeus' place.

She was surprised he hadn't tried earlier, actually. Especially if what they'd just been through was a commonplace occurrence.

But still, Zeus was his brother.

"Have you ever tried … you know … explaining this to him?"

Hades didn't need to ask to whom Persephone was referring. "Sure, I've tried. Like a thousand times. But he doesn't listen. He never listens anymore." There was bitterness in his voice, to be sure, but Persephone thought she also detected a certain wistfulness as well. He sat next to Cerberus, looking as dejected as she'd ever seen him. "None of them do."

Persephone sat down by his side, and put her hand on his shoulder. "Well, I'm listening."

He turned to look at her then. Why, why did she have to be like this? Why did she have to be so damn sweet and snarky, so sharp and sympathetic, such a beautiful swirl of contradictions, all at the same time? Why did she have to stir his heart …

But he had no heart. He needed to remember that. And if he had ever had one, his heart had died with Rhea, his mother. So he shrugged her hand off, and said, in the most callous voice he could manage, "Hey look, no offense babe, but let's not forget, you're kind of a captive audience here."

He saw Persephone's face fall. He'd hurt her. He should have been gratified, but somehow, he just felt slightly sick. Beside them, Cerberus whimpered, clearly sensing the tension.

"Oh yes, that's right," she said, with increasing bitterness in every word. "I'm just a means to an end. I nearly forgot. How foolish of me. How stupid. _Thank you so much_ for reminding me exactly what I mean to you!"

And with that, she strode away. The dog made to follow, but with a sharp, "_Stay_, you dumb mutt!" tossed over her shoulder, Persephone had the poor pup completely cowed. The same could not be said for Hades, however. Before he could stop himself, he was going after her.

"Persephone, wait – I – I didn't mean –"

She ignored him, of course. She didn't stop walking until she reached the waters of Lethe, and there she stood. For a moment, she considered diving in, wanting to forget everything, wanting to erase the pain he'd just inflicted upon her. Tears welled up her eyes, but she wouldn't let them fall. She would not give Hades the satisfaction of seeing her cry over him.

Hades came to a stop behind her, and they both stood there, stubborn, silent. After what seemed to be a long time, Hades finally said, "I'm … I'm sorry."

She'd heard around Olympus that it was a very rare thing for the Lord of the Underworld to apologize. The consensus seemed to be that it had been eons since he'd uttered any kind of half-hearted apology for anything he'd done, much less a sincere one. If that was true, then she supposed this was a rather momentous occasion.

She didn't especially care.

"Why?" she said sharply, cursing herself for not being able to keep the quaver out of her voice. "Everything you've said is true. And I don't mean just now. The whole reason you brought me here was to be used as a bargaining chip against my mother. And why not? It's not as though I have any actual value on my own. I'm the goddess of … nothing! What other possible use could I have but as a pawn?" Unbidden, the tears started to fall down her cheeks, and she wiped them angrily away.

"You're amazing."

Persephone turned to stare at him in disbelief. "What?"

"You're amazing," Hades said again. "You're … you're strong, and brilliant, and beautiful –"

"You think I'm beautiful?"

"Are you kidding? You – oh come on, you _know_ you're gorgeous, alright? Don't play dumb." She scoffed.

"Aphrodite is beautiful. I'm –"

"Aphrodite ain't got nothing on you, babe." He said it with such conviction that she felt she felt she could actually start to believe it.

"Really?"

Was it actually possible she didn't know how stunning she was? Had Demeter kept her so sheltered that she'd never noticed heads turning and jaws dropping whenever she walked into a room?

"Listen, the point is, Persephone, that you are amazing. Everything about you is amazing. It doesn't matter that you don't have an official title yet. You are … indescribably amazing. And don't let any of those other yutzes on Olympus tell you different, okay?"

Despite herself, Persephone smiled at him. "You shouldn't say things like that."

"Why not?"

"Because … because I'm trying to be mad at you, damn it!"

"But it's all true."

"Hades …" Suddenly, she was standing very close to him, close enough to feel the heat radiating off his form. She stroked his face, gently, and he drew in a sharp breath at her touch.

"You … you shouldn't do that…"

"Please …" Her face was inches from his now, and his arms seemed to have slipped around her of their own accord. "Please, Hades, just let me…"

He'd have let her do whatever she wanted. He didn't think he was capable of denying her anything at this point. She was about to put her lips to his …

And then, just then, because the Fates apparently hated him – Pain and Panic appeared.

"Boss!"

"Boss!"

"WHAT?" This time it was Persephone's turn to shout. "What now? You two seriously have the worst timing ever!"

Persephone had never yelled at the imps before. They were used to that, and worse, from Hades, but she was different. Or so they had thought. Their wide-eyed, wounded looks quickly made her regret her outburst.

"Oh boys, I'm sorry," she sighed, patting their heads consolingly, and they both smiled at her in relief, instantly forgiving. "What's going on?"

"It's … weird …" Pain began. "It's like the Earth is … dead." Persephone frowned.

"Dead?"

"Er, well, maybe 'sleeping' is a better term," Panic interjected, not wanting to upset her. "From what we heard, first the leaves started turning colors on the trees … it was actually kind of pretty …"

"But then the leaves fell off …"

"And the grass died …"

"And the flowers, and all the other plants …"

"And then it got colder …"

"And colder …"

"And then it started raining!" Panic exclaimed. "Except it wasn't rain, it was like … different."

"Fluffy-looking stuff." Panic added.

"They're calling it 'snow.'" Pain explained.

Persephone looked as if she were internally processing their words. Then her eyes seemed to light with comprehension.

"My mother," she whispered. "Tell me, what did you hear of my mother?"

She could tell from the expressions on both of their faces that it wasn't good news.

"Um, Miss Persephone, maybe you should sit down for this part –"

"Tell me, please." Panic couldn't ignore the urgency in her voice. He swallowed.

"They say she's … dying."

"Dying?" Persephone echoed incredulously. "But … but she's a goddess! She can't die!" She turned to Hades, sure he would confirm this, but the look on his face made her blood run cold.

"Can she?"

"There are …" Hades expression was pained, and for once, he seemed to be at a loss for words. "There are ways. Ways I don't fully understand, but there are ways … that gods can die."

Persephone began to shake. Sure, she complained about her mother – that she was overbearing, overprotective, that she treated her like a child, that she tried to run her life – but in the end, she knew everything her mother did was out of love. She knew Demeter loved her. And she loved her mother, more than she could ever say.

"Why …?"

"They say it's grief," Pain whispered. "It's like … she's withering. Wasting away."

Persephone let out a gasp. All this time, she'd been so preoccupied with exploring her new environment, with exploring … him … and she hadn't even given a thought to her mother, how worried she'd be, how she'd miss her, how she must have been wondering if she would ever see her daughter again. Shame welled up inside her, shame such as she had never felt before, and she couldn't stop herself from crying again. She put her face in her hands, her whole body shaking. "No, not Mother … please …"

"You can go."

Persephone lifted up her face and looked at Hades through her tears. "What?"

"You can go." Hades said again. Still, Persephone couldn't quite believe it. "I'm letting you go."

"But – your plans –"

"Clearly, my plans have backfired, pretty spectacularly. And for what it's worth, I'm sorry for that." Two apologies in one day. It must be a record. But again, she didn't care.

"Hades –"

"Persephone, it's not very often I do the right thing. Okay, it's pretty much never. The point is, you need to take advantage of this lapse in bad judgment now, before I change my mind. Go back to Olympus."

"But what if told you … what if I told you that I wanted to stay here, with you?" Again, she caressed his face. He covered her hand with his own.

She was killing him. This girl was killing him.

"Then I would say that … it's your mother. It's your mother, Persephone. You have to go."

He turned to the imps. "Boys, take the chariot and get her back to Olympus –"

Before he could finish, Persephone had thrown her arms around him, hugging him tightly. "I'll be back," she whispered in his ear. "I promise you, I'll be back."

He couldn't say anything to her, couldn't even look at her. "Boys, take her home. Now." He managed to get out.

"Come on, Miss Persephone." Panic tugged at her robe gently. Persephone followed the imps, but before they disappeared, she looked back at Hades.

"I'll come back!" She said, her beautiful voice echoing through the Undeworld. "I promise, I promise …" And then she was gone. Hades shook his head.

"No," he said hollowly. "You won't."


	8. Chapter 8

Let it Burn

Chapter Eight: Mine

On Olympus, Persephone threw herself onto her bed and wept.

It was a childish thing to do, and she hated herself for it. She hated herself for slipping so easily back into the role her mother had forced her to play for centuries. She hated Olympus, and all the gods dwelling there.

She hated her mother.

Well, that wasn't quite right. She loved her mother; she just hated her rather vehemently at this particular moment in time. When she'd been dropped off at the gates of Olympus by the imps, she'd been quite desperate to see Demeter, and felt she had never loved her more. The gates had automatically opened for her – even without a specialty, she was still a goddess after all, and unlike Hades, she hadn't been banned. She strode through, ignoring the gasps, questions, and curious stares of the other gods. She marched straight up to Zeus, who stood up from his throne in shock at her entrance, Hera by his side.

"Persephone? Where have you been? We've been looking everywhere!" She ignored his question.

"Where is my mother?"

"_Where have you been?_"

Persephone's tart reply withered on her tongue. Despite the time she'd spent on Olympus, Zeus had always been a rather distant figure to her, and she'd never really had any clear impression of him, one way or the other. At times, she had even allowed herself to think that he seemed rather buffoonish. Now, she knew how foolish that assessment had been, for she had never seen him in his fury. He looked every inch the being that he was: the King of the Gods, and someone whose patience was not to be tried. She swallowed.

"I was … detained." She chose her words carefully despite the fact that she was feeling more intimidated by the minute. "I promise, I will explain. But I must see my mother. Take me to her … please, sir," she added quickly at the end.

Zeus expression softened somewhat. "Of course," he said. "She's been so worried about you. We all have. Hera, my dear, please take her in to see Demeter." Zeus' wife attempted to give the girl a reassuring smile, but she was so strained that it looked like a grimace. Struggling to maintain her composure, Persephone followed Hera into a separate room. When she caught sight of her mother, she could not help but gasp.

Her mother had always been bursting with life, warmth, vitality. Sometimes – too often – Persephone had found her mother's vigor irritating. Now, she felt terribly guilty about those thoughts. For here Demeter lay, barely breathing, it seemed, and she looked – Persephone did not quite know how to describe it. She looked like a dried husk of corn. Like a scorched stalk. Like a withered flower, like a diseased tree, like a rotted fruit. All these things at once, and worse – that was how her mother looked.

With a small cry of anguish, Persephone flew to her mother's side. "Mother!" She cried, and then lower, softly, gently, "Mother, can you hear me? Mother please …" She put her hands on her mother's arm, which felt as lifeless as the rest of her looked. She could not stop the tears from falling. They spilled out of her eyes and fell on Demeter's prone form.

Demeter's eyes flickered open, at first heavily lidded, and then they widened, as if disbelieving the sight before them. "Persephone?" Demeter managed weakly, the beginning of a smile gracing her features. "My daughter …"

And then a wonderful thing happened. Demeter began to heal herself. Persephone could not fully describe it, but it was as though she was blooming, opening her spirit, heart, and body once again to the sun. By the time she had sat up fully, thrown her arms around Persephone, and burst into tears, she was completely back to normal. And far below them, where the mortals sat shivering and bewildered in their homes, the cold, white substance they had named "snow" had miraculously melted away. The bare, dead trees bore leaves and fruit again, the crops restored themselves, and the flowers blossomed. For all intents and purposes, it was a classic happy ending.

For everyone except Persephone.

To be sure, in the moment, she had been happy enough. Of course, after getting over the simple joy of her daughter returning to her safe and sound, Demeter quite understandably demanded an explanation for her absence. That was when the problems began. Persephone had tried to explain to her mother what had happened, and how she felt about it – but she had to start the story where it began, and the simple truth was that Hades had abducted her. He had taken her to the Underworld against her will.

Now, Persephone was of the opinion that what had happened afterwards made things less black-and-white than they might seem at first blush, but her mother was having none of it. She would not hear her daughter's words after the initial admission that Hades had kidnapped her. And after it had been clear that Demeter was alright, Hera had discreetly left the room to give the two of them some time talk privately, so no one else was there to hear Persephone try and defend Hades, to hear her explain that he hadn't treated her badly, that she had grown to know him, to care for him, and that, in the end, he had let her go. Persephone's words fell on deaf ears as her mother bounded out of the room and barreled straight towards Zeus, demanding vengeance against the Lord of the Underworld.

Demeter was normally a docile and pleasant deity, but her rage was an impressive sight, and every other god on Olympus who had ever considered her "harmless" thought better of the notion now, even the King of the Gods himself. Persephone trailed helplessly after her mother, her own voice drowned out by her mother's ranting. Demeter was proclaiming loudly for all to hear that her daughter had been "defiled" by Hades, trapped in the vile Underworld and kept from her beloved mother, only escaping through sheer force of will and her own wit –

"No, no, **no**!" Persephone had finally shouted loud enough to overcome her mother's volume. Demeter looked to her daughter in astonishment.

"That's not how it happened, Mother! That's what I've been trying to tell you!"

Zeus looked at her questioningly. "Are you saying my brother didn't kidnap you?"

Persephone hesitated. "Well, no, that part is true, but –"

"You see!" Demeter exclaimed. "If you doubt my word, here is the truth from my daughter herself!"

"There's more to it than that –"

"She only seeks to minimize Hades' transgression against her, Zeus, because she knows that you will never _truly_ punish you wayward brother for his many crimes. As do I! As do we all!" She gestured to the other gods around them, and most looked away, uncomfortable, but there were a few murmurs of agreement. "Hades stormed Olympus with the Titans and would have made prisoners of us all, and you gave him a mere slap on the wrist! And then, further emboldened by your leniency, he _kidnaps _my daughter, because you have shown him he can get away with anything!"

"Now see here, Demeter," Zeus began angrily, talking over her, his voice rising. "I realize you have just been through a terrible ordeal, but I resent the implication that –"

"SHUT UP! Both of you!"

Both Demeter and Zeus turned to stare at Persephone, along with every other deity in Olympus, in utter and complete shock.

She stood there, breathing heavily, staring back at them all. _I just told my own mother to shut up. More importantly, I just told the almighty King of the _Gods_ to shut up. In front of everyone. I, Persephone, the goddess of absolutely nothing, have done this._ Persephone knew she should have been scared witless, but somehow, she was not. In fact, she felt strangely … exhilarated. Almost giddy.

"Well?" Her gaze re-focused on an annoyed Zeus, and some of the giddiness dissipated. "What I meant to say," Persephone said, her voice much more subdued but no less determined, "was that my mother is not telling you the whole story. Yes, it is true that Hades abducted me. But it is also true that he let me go." The other gods murmured their surprise at this, but Zeus put up a hand, and they fell silent.

"Why?" Hera asked gently.

"I'm sorry … I'm not sure … do you mean, why did he let me go, or why did he abduct me in the first place?"

"I think the answers to both of those questions are pertinent … don't you, my dear?" She asked her husband deferentially. Zeus smiled at her, impressed as always by his wife's ability to keep a cool head in a tense situation.

"Indeed," he said, and looked at Persephone expectantly.

She swallowed. She knew she could not lie to him. "Sir, I must admit, Hades … at first … his plan was to use to use me against my mother …"

"Let me guess," He said wearily, "To compel her aid in another uprising against me." Zeus sighed, and Hera put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Well, that's Hades alright. Nothing if not consistent."

"You see?" Her mother was starting in again. "You see what your brother is, this monster who takes my daughter, my precious one, my little child!"

"Stop it Mother, stop it!" Persephone screamed, pushed to her limit. "I am _not_ a child anymore! I haven't been for a long time! And yet you continue to treat me like one. Well I won't have it anymore! Do you hear me, I won't have it!"

Demeter turned to her daughter, stunned. She reached out to her. "But Persephone, you're … you're my little girl …" Angrily, she swatted her mother's hand away.

"No, I'm not," she said firmly. "I'm not yours, mother."

"Then whose are you?" Demeter demanded angrily. "_His_?"

Persephone's eyes widened. She didn't know what the answer to that question was. She was afraid she never would.

And so it was that she had run crying from the place, just like the child she had so vehemently denied being. She had been in her room for a week, while her mother had given out that she was "recovering" from her ordeal. The tears wouldn't stop, no matter how much she tried to fight them.

Was it always to be this way? Was her beloved, hated my mother always going to be able to reduce her to nothing more than a mere godling? Would she always be under that benevolent, controlling green thumb?

Gradually, her sobs subsided, and she sensed her mother's presence in the doorway. She was slightly surprised as she turned to face her. She would have guessed that her mother would have been in the main room with Zeus, as she had in the days past, trying to convince him and the other gods that her daughter was clearly hysterical, delusional, under some unwholesome influence by Hades, that she had said things she didn't mean… and yet, here Demeter was.

"You never answered my question," she said, and there was a hardness to her voice that Persephone didn't recognize. "Are you his?"

She gulped. She quailed. She felt afraid. She felt full of doubt. She felt light-headed and slightly sick.

And then, quite suddenly, all of these feelings disappeared, and things became quite clear. She knew what the answer to her mother's question was.

And it was the most wonderful feeling in the world.

"No, Mother," she answered with absolutely certainty. "I'm not his. But I'm not yours either. I'm _mine_."

She gave a breathless little laugh, feeling freer than she ever had in her entire life, and repeated it to herself like a prayer: "_I'm mine._" Then she turned to her mother, and her wonderment was replaced by a cold fury.

"How dare you," she said.

"What?" Her mother was genuinely bewildered. "How dare I what?"

"How dare you presume to speak for me. How dare you try to smother _my_ voice. How_ dare_ you proclaim, to Zeus and all the others, that I was 'defiled' by Hades! Even if that had been the case – and I can assure you Mother, it was not – do you think I would wish it to be common knowledge? Do you imagine I would want something so private and personal to be shouted for all to hear? _How dare you!_"

Persephone's voice rose with every syllable. However, she was far from hysterical. Her voice was booming, powerful, and controlled. Still, Demeter tried to protest, to make it all go away.

"My dear – please – you are not well – you are not yourself – Hades has corrupted you – he has forced you to lose your innocence –"

"If you think I am not myself, Mother, then the sad fact is that you do not know me at all. As for Hades, if what you are you implying had actually happened, I can assure you, he would not have had to force me to do anything. As a matter of fact, I would have been a more than willing participant."

The room echoed with the sound of Demeter's slap. She had struck her daughter with all the force she could manage – which was an impressive amount at that. As soon as she realized what she'd done, she gasped, drawing her had back as if it had been burned.

For her part, Persephone looked neither surprised, nor hurt, nor even angry. She touched her cheek where her mother had struck her, regarding Demeter coolly.

"My dearest – I'm sorry –"

"Get. Out."

And Demeter fled from the room.

Persephone closed the door behind her, leaning against the frame, and closed her eyes. His words echoed in her head. _You are … indescribably amazing. And don't let any of those other yutzes on Olympus tell you different, okay?_

She smiled. "Thank you," she whispered. Then her eyes opened. "It's time for me to keep my promise."

Another figure suddenly appeared in the room.

"I think I might be able to help with that," Aphrodite said.

*Author's Note: I wrote this chapter immediately after getting into a fight with my mother. Make of that what you will.*


	9. Chapter 9

Let it Burn

Chapter Nine: The Return

Author's Note: Okay, so this part is kind of sappy. What can I say? It's a romance fic. Don't blame me, blame Aphrodite! It was _her_ idea.

Aphrodite almost couldn't believe she was doing this.

Like all the deities on Olympus, she'd been startled by Persephone's disappearance, and scandalized by her return. The differing accounts of what had happened to Demeter's daughter had swirled around the clouds of their home, a whirlwind of whispers, speculation and innuendo. Aphrodite had been as curious as the next person, taking in all the conflicting information with a healthy amount of skepticism and, she had to admit, an eager ear for the latest gossip. But even as much as she listened, she had no way of telling what version of events was true.

At least until she saw Hades.

It happened by accident. As curious as she was, Aphrodite hadn't had any intention of seeking out the god of the Underworld. For one thing, he had an annoying habit of hitting on her whenever they came into contact. She supposed he couldn't really help it; after all, she _was_ the goddess of love, and unlike the rest of the male deities on Olympus, he didn't spend a lot of time around her, so he had no immunity to her aura, and reacted to it almost like a mortal would. Still, she didn't like it, and frankly, she didn't like him. As a matter of fact, when it came to Hades, the same could be said for most gods on Olympus.

Of course, Persephone may have very well been an exception to that.

Aphrodite hadn't had much occasion to interact with the young goddess in the past, nor had she been able to see her since her return to Olympus. The girl's mother had almost immediately sequestered her, supposedly for her own good. Olympus was in a bit of an uproar over the whole thing, and Zeus had declared that no one was to confront Hades as of yet. He would probably do that himself. Aphrodite supposed Hades had it coming after this latest transgression.

However, all the hubbub surrounding Persephone's disappearance and subsequent return had not stopped the other gods from performing their duties. So when Aphrodite heard a mortal beseeching the gods about a matter that could reasonably be interpreted as being in her purview, she didn't think twice before descending down to the Earth. And, as the Fates would have it, Hades had heard the plea too, and had decided it was _his _issue.

Aphrodite wasn't really surprised to see him there. This certainly wasn't the first time they'd both claimed jurisdiction over a mortal's plea; the incident with Medusa quickly sprang to mind. Her way had won out back then, after some difficulty.

This time, it wasn't even a contest. The mortal chose her solution over Hades' offer, but the goddess of love couldn't exactly relish her victory. For one thing, Hades' pitch had been so lackluster and unenthusiastic that the woman really only accepted her help by default.

"What's going on here?" Aphrodite asked him, after the mortal had left, satisfied with the love deity's solution to her problem. "What's wrong with you, anyway?"

"What do you mean what's wrong with me?" Hades muttered, barely seeming to have the will to converse with her.

"Well for starters, you barely even tried to sucker that mortal –"

"You _won_, Aphrodite, are you actually going to complain about it?"

"And for another thing, you're not doing that – you know – that creepy come-on thing you usually do with me."

"What's the matter, you miss it?" Hades asked bitterly.

Aphrodite scoffed. "Please –"

"Admit it; you can't stand the thought of one less man, mortal or immortal, not falling at your feet. Even one you hate."

She sighed. "I don't hate you, Hades. I just … don't like you very much."

"Well, I don't care either way."

Aphrodite looked at him carefully. "Oh my," she said softly. "I don't believe it."

Hades looked at her blankly. "Don't believe what?"

She pointed at him. "You're – you're in love with her!" She exclaimed.

"What? Who? I am not!" Hades' voice was panicky, and Aphrodite laughed. Oh, this was just _too_ good.

"Yes you are! You're in love with Persephone!"

"No, no, no, no! Look babe, just because I'm not interested in you, doesn't mean –"

"Ha! This is _too _delicious. The mighty Lord of the Dead has been felled by Cupid's bow!"

"Shut up!"

"Oh just admit it Hades. Love conquers all, even you."

"What do you want me to say, Aphrodite?" Hades exploded, his flame burning red. "Do you want me to say I can't stop thinking about her? Do you want me to say I'd give anything to have return to me, even though she never will? That even if I could take over my brother's place as lord of Olympus right this second, all the power in the Cosmos would be meaningless without her? Do you want to know that I'm more miserable and alone than I've ever been before? Is that what you want? You want to gloat, huh? Well here you go, here's the big confession: I lover her, and I can't have her, and pretty soon she'll forget all about me, and her mother will find some yutz for her to marry, and everyone will be happy except for me, as usual! So why don't you just go on and do your little victory dance now?"

Suddenly the matter was decidedly not amusing. "No," Aphrodite said softly. "I'm not going to gloat, Hades."

Something about her gentle tone seemed to take the fight out of Hades completely. He slumped down towards the ground, his flame blue and burning low.

Surprising even herself, she put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Hades. Everyone deserves love. Even you."

Persephone had touched like that once, barely a week ago, although it seemed like an eternity had passed since then. He hadn't wanted to accept sympathy from her at the time, and he certainly didn't want Aphrodite's pity now. Truthfully, he would have preferred her scorn to this. He could take hatred, he could take apathy, but pity … pity was too much for him to bear.

"I don't need you to feel sorry for me. I need you to leave me alone."

Aphrodite had started to say something, but she'd thought better of it. She'd returned to Olympus determined to find out one thing: whether or not Persephone returned Hades' feelings. For although she didn't like Hades and barely knew Persephone, love was her specialty. If the feelings were mutual, Aphrodite knew she had to find a way to bring them together.

Of course, as she was about to explain to Persephone, she'd made a rather significant stop along the way.

And so she appeared in Persephone's room, just in time to overhear the girl say something about keeping her promise. She didn't have to be told it was a promise to Hades.

"I think I can help with that." She said.

"What? What are _you _doing in here?" Persephone asked, her eyes widening at the sight of the goddess of love in her room.

"Greetings, fair Persephone, I am Aphrodite, the goddess of –"

"Uh yeah, I know who you are and what you're the goddess of, thanks. I _live_ here, remember? I'm not some mortal chick fresh off the olive cart."

_How rude_, Aphrodite thought. This girl was just as mouthy as Hades. They were perfect for each other.

"Well if you're gonna be all snippy about it –"

"No, wait! You said you could help me. How? Please," she added reluctantly when Aphrodite gave her a look.

The goddess smiled. "That's better … a little." She said. "Now first, I need to know … do you love Hades?"

Persephone gulped. She hadn't expected Aphrodite to just come out and ask her like that. But then, she was the goddess of love, after all; it would be the thing foremost on her mind.

"I … yes. Yes, I do. I love him. I love Hades." She said it breathlessly, almost as if to herself, almost as if realizing it for the first time. It wasn't as though she hadn't thought about, but this was the first time she'd dared to speak the words out loud.

"I thought so." Aphrodite looked smug. "He loves you too, you know."

"Really?"

She had to admit the girl was rather charming, looking at her like that in all her wide-eyed hopefulness. She was starting to see why Hades had fallen for her.

But this girl was definitely not prettier than her. _No way_.

Shaking off the petty, unworthy thought, Aphrodite nodded. "Really. I heard it straight from him. He didn't want to admit it, but it's true."

"So you'll help me return to him?"

"Of course. But before I do, I have to show you something." She unfurled a cloth that she held in her hand, which Persephone hadn't noticed until that moment. When it was opened, she gasped.

"Is that -?"

"The Tapestry of Fate. Yep." Aphrodite said smugly. "Well, part of it anyway."

"How did you get your hands on that?"

"I uh, 'liberated' it from the Fates, so to speak. Normally that's a big no-no, but hey, what good is being the goddess of love if you can't bend the rules in the name of destiny ever once in a while?" She pointed to the pictures in the weaving.

"See, there's Hades, and there's you, and right underneath you it says –"

"I don't believe it!" Persephone gasped delightedly. Aphrodite grinned.

"Believe it, kid. I think you just found your specialty." Persephone gave a little squeal of glee.

"I have – I have to go to him! I have to get out of here!" She exclaimed, suddenly growing serious. "But my mother, and the others, they'll never let me leave…"

Aphrodite leaned down conspiratorially towards her. "I know a back way out," she said softly, her eyes sparkling. "I should be able to get you to the surface as long as you can keep quiet."

"Wait a second…"

"You don't want to go?"

"I do, I just … I'm going to leave a note. For my mother."

"Oh. Well okay, then. Just be quick about it."

Persephone took a piece of parchment from her desk drawer. For a moment she hesitated. Then she knew exactly what to write.

_Dear Mother,_

_I love you, but I can't stay here. I've tried to be what you want me to be, I really have. But it just doesn't work. I don't belong here; I never have. I hope some day you can understand._

_Persephone_

She turned to Aphrodite, who still held the piece of the tapestry. "Uh, can I have that? I want to leave it with the note."

The love goddess paused to consider, and then shrugged. "Eh, why not? I'm already in hot water with the Fates anyway. I'm sure it'll find it's way back to them eventually."

She handed the cloth to Persephone, who placed it on top of the note, not feeling the need to add any more words; the illustrations with their titles should be self-explanatory.

"Okay, now show me the way out," Persephone demanded eagerly. Aphrodite rolled her eyes at the girl's rudeness, but she complied, and together they stealthily made their way off Olympus and towards the Earth.

"It's up to you now," Aphrodite told her as they descended on the Fields by Enna, the site of Persephone's abduction. "The Underworld is Hades' domain, and he has total control. Only Zeus could enter without permission."

"So … what do I do? Just shout at the ground and hope he hears me?"

"Unless you've got a better idea … yeah, I'd say that about covers it." Persephone gave her a disbelieving look. "Hey listen, young lady, I've done all I can for you. And in case you haven't noticed, I could get in a lot of trouble for this."

Persephone sighed. "I'm sorry, you're right. Thank you for your help." She hesitated. "Uh, not to look a Trojan gift horse in the mouth or anything, but … why are you helping me, exactly?"

Aphrodite smiled. "Because you love Hades, and Hades loves you. And people who love each other should be together. This is my bag, hon. It's what I'm all about."

"Well thanks, really. I owe you."

"Just follow your heart and find your way to him, Persephone. That'll be enough for me." And then she was gone.

Persephone took a deep breath. "Okay, so … I guess there's nothing else for it." Feeling slightly foolish, she nevertheless knelt down on the ground. She pressed her hands into the earth, almost as if she could will it to open up, as it had the first time.

"Hades?" she called softly. She waited, and then added in a louder voice, "Hades, it's me."

Persephone tried for a few more minutes, at varying volumes and with various words (some of them not so delicate) to summon the Lord of the Underworld. A part of her was starting to think he didn't want to see her … but no, that couldn't be it. She needed to think about this. Hadn't she heard something on Olympus, about … about Zeus restricting Hades' movements after the whole Titan thing? Yes, she remembered now! Not only had Hades been barred from Olympus, but after he'd abducted her, Zeus had limited his access to the earth as well. He'd only been allowed to come up for beseechments and other things of that nature. He probably couldn't even hear her right now.

However, Persephone realized quickly, there will still two beings she knew who could come and go in the Underworld …

"Pain! Panic!" She called excitedly. It only took a moment for them to appear.

"Miss Persephone!" They chorused, bounding towards her, and she scooped them up in a tight hug.

"We missed you!" Panic shouted.

"I missed you more!" Pain added.

"No, _I_ did –"

Persephone laughed delightedly. "Oh boys, I missed you too. And Cerberus. And Hades. I have to say I missed him the most."

"Can you keep a secret?" Panic whispered.

"What?" She whispered back.

"He missed you the most too." Persephone smiled.

"Good. You boys can take me to him, can't you?" They nodded eagerly. "Well then, what are we waiting for? Let's go home."

Back in the Underworld, Hades was slouched apathetically on his throne. Cerberus lay at his side. He seemed to have taken on some of his master's dejected mood, and was far from his usual exuberant puppy self. The god's eyes roamed slowly around his domain. His eyes settled on river bank, and then he was unable to look away. For there, flowers bloomed, a rare sight indeed in his realm. Persephone had asked if she could grow them there, and like an idiot, he had agreed, even though flowers in the Underworld made about as much sense as mortal ghosts on Olympus.

And he had to admit, her arrangement had proved surprisingly tasteful and appropriate. They flowers had managed to be beautiful without clashing with the doom and gloom of his own realm.

Much like the one who made them.

Hades stood up, suddenly angry. Damn it, this wasn't _fair_. She was supposed to have been just a pawn! She wasn't supposed to make him feel … this. Okay, so it wasn't like he'd never appreciated a woman before. Little nut-Meg had always had her charm, though he'd been content to use her as a henchwoman and not a plaything (there were some lows even he wouldn't stoop to). Except for stupidly selling her soul to him, she was pretty smart, and proved to be an amusing and efficient minion … at least, until she went all goo-goo eyed for Wonderbreath.

And then of course there was that whole business with Aphrodite … but really, the goddess of love had that effect on everyone. Sure, she was gorgeous, but that was about it. The more he spent time around her, the more he realized her personality was a complete turn-off. All in all, he had been perfectly fine on his own, and then suddenly this infuriating, amazing little godling was strutting around _his _Underworld like she owned the place, like she belonged there, and –

The darkness suddenly lit up as Hades directed a fireball towards Persephone's flowers. It was satisfying in the moment, but as soon as he saw the withered remains of her handiwork, he instantly regretted what he'd done. He went over to the river bank, cupping the ashes of a ruined bloom in his hands.

He supposed he should at least be glad no one was here to see this. The imps were gone to who knew where – he hadn't really kept track of them lately.

This was the only thing he'd had left of her, and he'd just destroyed it.

"Geez Hades, I'm gone for a week and you're already throwing temper tantrums? I put a lot of thought into that arrangement you know."

Hades turned around. It couldn't be her. He had to have gone nuts. Yes, that was it. He was hallucinating. Or … or this was all a dream. It couldn't possibly…

"What … what," he managed. "What are you doing here?"

"Keeping my promise," Persephone said. "I told you I'd come back, didn't I? And I did … with a little help from Aphrodite … and then the boys." She smiled down at the imps by her side.

"But … your mother …"

"… Is fine." Persephone's beautiful features darkened temporarily. "She's going to have to learn to live without me, because I'm not a child anymore. I know who I'm supposed to be now. I know where I belong."

"Persephone …" He still couldn't believe it. "How can you be here?"

"I belong here, Hades," she said, drawing closer to him. "I've always belonged here. Aphrodite showed me. It's in the Tapestry of Fate and everything. I finally know what my specialty is. Zeus, Poseidon, they both rule their realms well … but they don't rule alone. Why should you have to?"

"Persephone, you can't mean –"

"Every god needs his goddess," she whispered. Then she jumped into his arms and kissed him.

She hadn't been about to wait for another interruption. She felt Hades wrap his arms around her, lifting her off the floor. After what seemed a long time, they broke apart, breathless, stunned.

"I love you." Even after trying to deny for so long, saying it was the most natural thing in the world. "I love you, Persephone."

"I love you too, Hades."


	10. Chapter 10

Let it Burn

Chapter Ten: Fuel to the Fire

Zeus was starting to get a headache. How could one little goddess possibly cause so much trouble?

"What do you mean she's gone _again_? What _is_ it with this girl?"

Demeter was getting ready for another angry tirade. "I'm sure your brother has something to do with –"

"Don't be ridiculous," Zeus scoffed. "Security has been greatly increased since the … incident. Even assuming there was any way for my brother to enter Olympus without my permission, he wouldn't be hidden for long. So the only conclusion is that your daughter left of her own free will!"

The Harvest Goddess was on the verge of an angry response when Hera gently intervened. "Demeter, we've seen the evidence that someone made their way out. You must admit to this."

Demeter sighed. "But my daughter doesn't know any other way out of Olympus than through the front gates!" she protested.

"Then the only thing I can think of is that she must have had help."

"But my dear, who on Olympus would have helped her?" Zeus asked.

Hera hesitated, choosing her words carefully, since she had nothing to confirm her suspicion. "Demeter, for all your protests, I couldn't help but notice that your daughter spoke of Hades with a certain degree of … familiarity and fondness." Demeter started to protest, but Zeus held up a hand.

"Let her finish," he said, in a tone that left no room for argument.

"So I think perhaps it is likely that the person who helped Persephone to leave was acting … or at least thought they were acting … in the interests of love."

Everyone turned to look at Cupid and Aphrodite.

"Hey, hey, hey now," Cupid sputtered, withering under the accusing glares. "Don't point fingers at me, I just shoot the arrows and let it all play out! Come on, seriously, when have any of you guys seen do more than aim my bow?"

"You've got a good point," Zeus admitted grudgingly. Then he turned to Aphrodite. "And what's _your _excuse?"

_Aw crap._ "I …" Aphrodite began. "Um, would you believe fate made me do it?"

Zeus glowered. "I'm in no mood for jokes!"

"But it isn't a joke – not really!" She turned to Demeter accusingly. "Didn't you read your daughter's note? Didn't you look at the tapestry?"

"Note?" Zeus echoed. "Tapestry? Demeter, why didn't you mention any of this –"

"I don't know what she's talking about –" Demeter began, but Aphrodite cut her off.

"Oh save it! I saw her write the letter and leave it for you, and I gave her the tapestry of fate!" The last few words caused the gods to begin talking excitedly among each other, until Zeus angrily called for silence. Hera put a hand on his arm, a gentle reminder to maintain his composure. He took a deep breath.

"Aphrodite, _dear_, perhaps you'd better start at the beginning."

Meanwhile in the Underworld, a parallel discussion was taking place.

"Hades, I told you, I don't care what anyone else says. I love you, and I want to stay with you. _This_ is where I belong."

_I love you._ Did it ever feel good to hear her say that. No one had said that to him since … but he pushed the memory out of his mind.

"It's not what they'll say, Persephone, it's what they'll _do_. In case you haven't noticed, I'm not exactly Mr. Popularity with the rest of the god squad … not that they don't have good reason, I guess. And I don't think you realize what the consequences of this could be, what you'd be giving up –"

"You mean giving up being bored to tears on Olympus? Giving up hearing the whispers and snickers about being the only god without a specialty? Call me crazy Hades, but I think I can stand to lose those things!"

"And what about your mother? What if staying with me means you never get to see her again?"

This actually gave Persephone pause, though Hades could tell she was trying to hold firm. "My mother doesn't control me."

"Yeah, you seem to be pretty clear on that now." Hades put his hands on her shoulders. "And babe, I'm proud of you for stepping out of her shadow. But she's still your mother. Maybe you're not real happy with her right now, but I know you love her."

Persephone sighed. "But I love you, too," she said as they wrapped their arms around each other. "Those two things shouldn't be mutually exclusive." Hades kissed the top of her head.

"No, they shouldn't. Believe me Persephone, I love you, and I want you to stay. I … just … I mean, come on babe, you can't split yourself in two!"

Persephone's eyes suddenly widened, and she lifted her head from where it had been resting on his chest. "Yes I can."

Hades gave her a questioning look, but she was already calling for Pain and Panic.

"Boys," she said when they arrived. "Remember when we were first introduced, you asked me if there was anything I needed. What was it you offered exactly? Let's see, there was water, brimstone and …"

"Pomegranate?" Pain finished.

Persephone smiled. "Exactly. I'd like that pomegranate now, if you don't mind."

"Sure," the imps chorused, slightly puzzled but eager to please, and went off to fulfill her request. Persephone turned back to Hades, smiling.

"I seem to recall hearing something … something about those who eat the food of the Underworld becoming bound to the Underworld … it's true, isn't it?" She concluded, seeing the expression on Hades' face.

"Persephone … you don't understand … I don't know how it will affect you …"

"I'm willing to risk it."

The imps returned quickly. Persephone took the fruit from them. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. _Forgive me, mother_, she thought. And then she took a big bite.

She'd expected the pomegranate to taste different somehow, but it seemed just like anything she might have eaten on the surface of the earth. She smiled up at Hades, who looked anxious. "Well, that was anti-climatic – oh!"

Her snide remark was cut off by a wave of nausea. Persephone clutched her stomach as a sudden pain seemed to twist her insides. Hades was instantly by her side, already cursing himself for allowing her to do this. People who ate the food of the Underworld were normally mortals, not gods. Damn it, for once in his life, he shouldn't have been so selfish!

Persephone shook in his arms and gave a little moan, the luminance of her white skin dulling to gray.

"Hades," she said softly. "It's all right, I understanding now. Give me … give me your fire."

It took him a moment to understand. "But … it'll burn you."

She took his hand in hers. "Let it burn."

The flame spread from his head down his arm, to their joined hands, then up Persephone's arm until it finally reached her own head, setting her hair ablaze in a brilliant flash of white, her godly aura burning brighter than it ever had before.

She turned to Hades. "Don't be afraid," she said.

He gulped. "I'm not."

She laughed and took his face in her hands. "Hades, I came back to you. I'll always come back to you." She turned to the imps.

"Boys, think you can make yourselves scarce for a while?" Not needing to be told twice, they scampered off. She wrapped her arms around Hades and kissed him, and they let the moment carry them away, as Hades' scooped her up and carried her to his bed.


	11. Chapter 11

Let it Burn

Chapter Eleven: Conversations and Compromises

It had been a very, very long time since Zeus had journeyed to the Underworld.

But it had to be done. At first, he'd been ready to just drag the wayward girl back, but after hearing Aphrodite's story … could it possible? Was the girl actually in love with his conniving little brother? And what about Hades? Did he actually feel something for him, or was she just another means to an end?

Well, according to the tapestry at least, Persephone was _supposed _to be his wife. Her title was there, right underneath her likeness: "Persephone, wife of Hades, Goddess of the Underworld." Although she'd looked a little different in the picture; something about her hair, he thought, though he didn't take time to study it closely.

But even if all this was so, did that mean Hades really loved her? Was he even capable of that anymore?

When the Titans had attacked Olympus, everyone thought Zeus had been furious at Hades. And of course, he had been. But there was more to it than that. He felt hurt. Betrayed.

Okay, so he and Hades had never gotten along as well as either of them had with Poseidon, that much was true. But they were still brothers. They'd fought side by side to defeat the Titans, not to mention their terrifying father. If Hades was so disgruntled, so dissatisfied with the Underworld that he would be driven to that level of treachery, why couldn't they have just talked about it before things got so out of hand?

"Because you don't listen!" Poseidon had exclaimed, after a lot of beating around the bush. He'd gone to see him before making the journey to the Underworld, feeling he was the only one besides Hera who might understand his conflicting emotions. Back in their youth, Poseidon had always been the one to play peacemaker when Zeus and Hades butted heads, but over the years, he'd started to see it as an exercise in futility.

When he went to visit the sea god, he was always struck by how much he was like their mother, at least a far as personality went. He was so open and easygoing, so forgiving, so desperate for everyone to just get along. There had been a few times when Hades had tried to scam him, and sure, in the moment, Poseidon would get angry and give him a sound thumping for his trouble, but after that, he considered the matter resolved, and all was forgiven. And Zeus … well, he just couldn't do that, though sometimes he wished he could.

They had been talking about the troubles with Hades, both in the past and this most recent problem, and Zeus had been lamenting their youngest brother's treachery. It was really the first time they'd talked about it; Zeus hadn't wanted to before, and Poseidon tended to avoid uncomfortable subjects if he could help it.

"What do you mean I don't listen?"

"I mean … exactly what I said," Poseidon admitted, somewhat reluctantly.

"Brother, you know I've always tried to be a fair leader, to keep an open mind …"

"I know." Poseidon admitted. "I'm not saying you've been doing a bad job. It's just … sometimes you get an idea in your head, that there's a certain way things have to be done, and you just … won't hear arguments to the contrary. It's like you think changing your mind would make you look weak, or something."

"And you're saying it wouldn't?"

"Only if you did it all the time. But you _never_ do it. You know, I've watched Hades. I've seen him try to approach you several times about how he's unhappy running the Underworld, how maybe he could get some help or something, but you always brushed him off, like he was a whiny little boy. I saw how it made him seethe, even if you didn't."

"But I … oh come on, I wasn't_ that_ bad. I told him he should take a vacation!"

"See, that's what you don't get. Hades _can't _take a vacation. I mean, people don't just stop dying! He's surrounded all the time by scared, miserable mortal souls. It's not his fault that they're in his realm, and yet, he gets the blame. The rest of us get worshipped. He gets feared at best, hated at worst."

"I … didn't think about it that way. Why didn't you tell me this before?"

Poseidon shook his. "Because, my dear big brother, you don't really listen to me either." Zeus wanted to correct him, but he was starting to realize that it was true. How had he not realized this about himself?

"That's still no excuse for what Hades did!" He snapped. It was a frightening thing to suddenly be confronted with his own flaws.

"No, it's not. I'm not saying it is. I'm saying that things aren't as cut and dry as they might first seem."

"You know Poseidon, it's not as though Hades is the only deity with a difficult job. You and I do a lot of hard work too."

"Yes, that's true. But we also have wives to help us, to guide us, to rule by our sides."

"And you think that's all Hades needs? You think that's what he's found with this … Persephone?"

Poseidon shook his head. "I don't know. But I'd like to think so." He looked up at Zeus. "You need to talk to him, brother. I mean really talk. And really listen."

Zeus sighed. "You're right. I will."

Poseidon clapped his shoulder, smiling hopefully. "Good luck."

So here he was then. The Underworld was even drearier than he remembered.

"Hades." He called out. And then: "Persephone!"

As any god would be compelled to do when he called their names, they appeared. His brother's arms were around the young goddess, and she clung to him, like she was afraid at any moment of being torn away. But that wasn't the most compelling thing about their appearance. For, as he looked at Persephone, he saw that her head was now topped in a white flame.

"What … what is the meaning of this? What has happened to you, Persephone?"

The young goddess swallowed. She looked nervous, but somehow … older, Zeus thought. More confident, more self-assured.

"What's happened is, I'm married."

"Married? But how? Only Hera can approve –"

"We're not mortals, brother." Hades' voice was a strange mixture of apprehension and defiance. "We're gods. Maybe not the most important ones, or the best-liked ones, but we're still gods. We got hitched by deciding that's how it should be, just the way you and Hera did back in the day. She's my wife now. You can't take her away from me."

Despite his words, Hades looked like he was worried that Zeus would do exactly that, and the couple drew closer together. Zeus had never seen his brother act like this before.

"Persephone," he said quietly. "I'd like some time to speak with my brother alone, please."

The newly minted goddess of the Underworld looked uncertainly at her husband. "It'll be okay," he said.  
>"I'll straighten this out. Don't worry." She bit her lip, but nodded. The she turned to Zeus.<p>

"Just so you know, and meaning no disrespect to you … I'm not going back. I love him. He's my husband now. His home is my home. I'm _not_ going back."

She kissed Hades and glided gracefully out of the room.

"She really does love you," Zeus said softly.

"Is that so hard to believe?" Hades snapped. Then he held up a hand. "No, no, don't answer that. The truth is … I can barely believe it myself, even now." He shook his head.

"And what about you, Hades? Do you love her?"

Hades avoided his brother's gaze. "I … I wasn't … I didn't _mean_ to. She was supposed to be just a pawn, just another way for me to …" His gaze flicked up, catching Zeus' dark look, and he swallowed, his eyes going back to the floor. "But I … I just couldn't help but love her. I mean _come on_, she's just so … she … understands."

"Understands what?"

"Me."

"And I don't." It wasn't a question. "Well, I suppose I should, or at least I should try to. Even after everything that's happened, we're still family. Mother wouldn't want us to be –"

"_Don't talk about her_."

"No, Hades, we _are_ going to talk about her. Or more importantly, you are going to talk about her. And you are going to talk about Persephone. And you are going to talk about why you've done the things you've done. And I … I am going to listen."

Hades gave a little snort of disbelief. "Why would _you_ listen? You never have before."

So there it was. It stung a little, but at least it was out in the open. "Well, I'm going to listen now. I should have listened to you before, and I'll take responsibility for that, as long as you own up to your mistakes as well. Right now, I want to hear what you have to say. I want to know how things could have gotten so bad between us. I want to understand. Besides, I still know one thing about you, brother: you _love_ to talk."

For just a moment, when Hades looked at him, Zeus saw a flash of something, a look he remembered from their childhood. A small smile tugged at the corners of Hades' mouth. "You're … you're a blowhard, you know."

"Yes, and you're a blabbermouth. So start talking already."

Sometime later, Zeus and Hades were finishing their conversation. "Are you sure about this?" Zeus asked.

"I'm sure."

"It's not exactly a perfect solution."

"Well, there really isn't a perfect solution for this situation, is there?"

"Do you think she'll be angry with you?"

"Who? Persephone or Demeter?"

"Er … actually, I was thinking of your wife, but now that you mention it, they'll probably both be mad."

Hades sighed. "Well, nothing like pissing off the missus and the mother-in-law at the same time. So much for the honeymoon phase."

"Oh my, that's right. You have Demeter as your mother-in-law now! You know Hades, I was going to bar you from Olympus for eternity, but on the other hand, I think having to deal with her for the rest of your life is punishment enough."

"Wait. You're … you're going to let me return to Olympus?" Zeus had the pleasure of catching his little brother completely off guard. He smiled.

"Yes. But only one condition. Your wife must always accompany you. That is, of course," he added, "When she's not already there." He paused. "You really are sure about this, Hades?"

"I know my wife." _Wife._ It still felt strange to say that. But in a good way. "She may have her issues with her mother, but she loves her. What's more, she doesn't want Demeter to wreck havoc again with the weather on Earth. I mean for one thing, we just couldn't handle the uptick in mortalities. Like you said, it's not an ideal solution, but it's the best I can come up with."

Zeus clapped his brother on the shoulder – more gently this time, as Hades had just disclosed that sometimes Zeus didn't know his own strength. "Well then, it's settled. You know," he continued thoughtfully, "I guess on some level, I've always known you've been jealous of me, but …"

Hades eyes his brother warily. He didn't like the direction this was going. "But what?"

"But I think you never realized that, on some level, I was jealous of you too."

Hades gaped at him. "You? Jealous of me? What could you possibly be jealous of? My unlimited supply of bones? My corner on the market for doom and gloom? You can't tell me it's the minions, because they're idiots –"

"It's about mother," Zeus said, which stopped Hades cold. "You were there. You got to say goodbye to her. I never did. I always envied you that."

"But I didn't." Hades said very softly. "I didn't say goodbye. I wanted … I wanted to tell her I loved her. I wanted to tell her not to go. But … but the words just wouldn't come out, and she was dying, impossibly dying, and I couldn't even say how much I …" His voice gave out. The two brothers stood side by side, heads bowed, silent for several minutes.

"She knew you loved her, Hades," Zeus finally said. "She knew we all did." He looked over at Hades, and chanced a smile. "You know, I always thought you were her favorite."

Hades snorted. "Funny. I always thought it was you. Or Poseidon, sometimes. But not me."

"You know, I think the truth was, she didn't play favorites. She was too good for that."

"Yeah. She was."

"Well," Zeus said briskly. "I suppose you should get Persephone, and we should go to Olympus for the official announcement."

"Okay." He hesitated. "Zeus?"

"Yes."

"I … thanks for … just, thanks, okay?"

Zeus smiled. "You're welcome, little brother," he said, and pulled him into a hug.

"Well you don't have to get mushy about it," he muttered, as Zeus released him. But still, he was smiling. A little.

"Oh shut up and go get your wife."

"I won't have it!" Demeter shrieked a short time later on Mount Olympus.

Zeus stifled a sigh. He almost wished he'd stayed in the Underworld. The rest of the gods had taken his news fairly well, buzzing excitedly among themselves about this unprecedented decision. Demeter, naturally, had not reacted the same way.

"Yes," he countered firmly. "Yes, Demeter, you will have it. You will accept this compromise, just as your daughter has." Initially, Persephone hadn't been too pleased either. He'd heard her cry of "What!" ring through the Underworld when Hades had gone off to explain things to her, and bid her come to Olympus with him. Fortunately, she had calmed down fairly quickly, and had reluctantly agreed to the rather unique solution. "Though I have to say," she had remarked to Zeus, just before they departed, "If I'd known you were going to base it on something as arbitrary as that, I would have eaten a few more of those pomegranate seeds." Goodness, but she had a sharp tongue. Zeus was beginning to see that just how well-suited she was to his brother.

Demeter was already trying to come up with an argument against the compromise. "But –"

"Mother, stop." Perspehone said gently. "Please."

Demeter shook her head, her eyes filling with tears. "Six months without my little flower? What will I do? I won't be able to concentrate on anything but when she's coming back to me. The earth will sleep in its blanket of leaves, and then its blanket of snow. Only when my Persephone returns to me will I make the flowers bloom again, the crops grow, the trees bear fruit. It will seem like a miracle to the mortals, and they will all know that my beloved daughter has returned to me."

_Oh great, _Hades thought._ I've got a drama queen for a mother-in-law._

Zeus let out an exasperated sigh. "Fine. Gaia could use a rest anyway. We'll call it … the change of the seasons. There will be Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter, and then the cycle will start all over again. Persephone ate six seeds, so she'll be with Hades in the Underworld for six months; that'll cover fall and winter. Then, for the other half of the year, she'll be with you, Demeter, and that will be Spring and Summer. The mortals will have time then to stock up on food and wood and make warm garments to get through the colder months. And that's how it's going to be from now on. _No arguments_." Zeus added in a thunderous voice, and Demeter fell silent.

"Yes, sir," she conceded, if a tad huffily. "So then … who gets her first?"

Persephone bristled. "I'm not property, mother."

"No, my dear, you're not," Zeus said. He looked at his brother regretfully, hoping he wouldn't take this personally. "But I think it would be best if you began the cycle by staying with your mother. The mortals need time to prepare for the coming changes before being thrown into the cold seasons again."

Persephone didn't look pleased, but at least she seemed to understand. She exchanged a look with Hades, and they nodded at each other, seeming to communicate without words.

"Very well." She said to Zeus. She turned back to her husband.

"I will come back to you. I will always come back to you. Remember that while we are apart."

"I know you will, Persephone. I love you. I love you so much."

She smiled. "I love you too." And she kissed him, right in front of everyone. She kissed him goodbye. But they were both comforted by the thought that it was only a goodbye for now.


	12. Chapter 12

Let it Burn

Author's Note: I didn't initially intend to make this story 12 Chapters, but now I think it fits. This chapter's title comes from the Evanescence song. Here's the link: .com/watch?v=1X4-CstkH9Q.

If you fudge a few of the words, I think it really works for Hades and Persephone. 

Chapter 12: Epilogue: The Other Side

The leaf, through faded from green to brown, was still clinging to the vine.

Persephone couldn't take her eyes off it.

"It's almost time," she said.

"I know, my dearest one."

"I wish you could understand, mother." Even her daughter's voice sounded different now. Everything – the way she looked, the way she carried herself – seemed to have subtly changed. She had hoped the hair at least would have gone back to normal during her time away from Hades, but the white flamed still burned. She really was of the Underworld now.

"I wish you could understand how much I love him," Persephone continued. "How happy he makes me, how good we are for each other. I still hope that someday you will."

"I'm trying, Persephone. I really am."

Persephone sighed. "Try harder, mother."

A wind blew, and the leaf broke free from its branch. Persephone smiled. She turned to her mother, who had tears in her eyes. Gently, she reached out and wiped them away.

"It won't be so bad, mother. I'll come up to Olympus every now and then during Fall and Winter." Demeter frowned.

"Just like you went down to the Underworld 'every now an then' to visit Hades during the six months you were supposed to be with me? Honestly, Persephone, that was hardly fair. It's bad enough I have to–"

"Mother, stop." She said gently but firmly. "Let's part on good terms." She drew Demeter into a hug. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, dearest daughter. So much."

Persephone turned away from her mother and closed her eyes. She _would_ miss her mother, but still, she'd been counting the days until this moment.

"Hades," she whispered. "Come and take me home."

Hades emerged from beneath the earth in his chariot. In an instant, she was in his arms, and they were embracing, deliriously, ridiculously happy to be together again.

Demeter loudly cleared her throat.

"Oh, hey! Your mom's here. That's … great." Hades said unconvincingly. Demeter scowled at him, but a warning look from her daughter kept her silent.

"So babe, you ready to go?" She nodded.

"Goodbye, mother. Take care of yourself."

"I will. And you," she said, pointing a finger at Hades. "You take good care of my little girl. Or else."

Hades bit back a snarky reply. "I will," he said simply.

"You know you don't deserve her…"

"Mother!"

Hades looked straight at Demeter. "Maybe not," he said, with no trace of his usual sarcasm. "But she loves me anyway. And I'm going to spend the rest of my life making sure she knows how grateful I am for that."

His statement seemed to stun Demeter into silence, and with that, the two deities descended into the Underworld.

There were some excited greetings from Pain and Panic, and even a short game of fetch with Cerberus. But the boys and the dog were quickly sent away, and then … then it was their time.

"I love you." Persephone said. "I will always come back to you. And when we are apart, I will always be waiting, counting the days until we're together again."

Hades wrapped his arms around her. "I love you. I'll always come to take you home, and when we are apart, I will always be waiting, counting the days until we're together again."

The words, like wedding vows, would be renewed every year, every time. The seasons would cycle on, and life would be bittersweet, but any sadness they felt would be tempered by the knowledge that they would always return to each other.

It wasn't a perfect situation, and it never would be. But, as Aphrodite had taken to saying:

"Love manages," Persephone whispered, drawing her husband Hades in for a kiss.

The End. Thanks for reading!


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